7 Reset Sukima
by WillieG.R
Summary: Ail must return to being who he was when he entered Gensokyo so that he may escape the challenge thrown on him by Shikieiki and Yukari. Can he end this test, this mind-wrecking challenge before he loses his mind? Contains strong language and themes Recommended you read Balance in the Dark spin-off before
1. Chapter 1

**Important Notice:**

_Welcome to Reset Sukima, a semi-dark fic. First I wish to warn you, the theme for this story is STRONG though still rated T. SOME THEMES INCLUDE RAPE AND MURDER, **AND THERE WILL BE DEATHS**, so if you are against any of those kind of themes, please hit back._

_Secondly, THIS STORY WILL BE CONFUSING, PARTICULARLY BETWEEN CERTAIN TRANSITIONS BETWEEN PARAGRAPHS. I ask that you keep this in mind and bear with me, for this confusion is part of the fun experience of this story. In short, it is MEANT to be confusing sometimes (unless I decide the confusion is unneeded). The reason for this will become apparent quickly._

_Thirdly, and most importantly! I will be taking many liberties from now on (particularly inside the other Gensokyo). Note also that I have decided to shorten the characters intros, and will only put attention to details when needed. I do hope you enjoy this new Sukima, for I have been very excited about it, and even more excited to share it with you all._

Dec 10 2012 - Did some slight fixes to the chapter. Nothing mayor; just made a few things easier to understand and follow._  
_

* * *

The Human Village, a small settlement in the land of Gensokyo, paradise of youkai, that houses the few humans that live in said world, and is also a good place for human-friendly youkai to commute with those humans.

Anilan Inmodo Leuch, better known as Ail, who has short, unkempt brown hair, golden eyes, and currently wears a long-sleeved purple sweater, black pants and his usual brown boots, groans as he wakes up, feeling the soft grass on his back and the wind blow strongly above him.

He opens his right eye and can see the Dragon God's Statue of the Human Village, and the shade of the tree he is lying under, swaying around with the strong wind; the leaves making a beautiful sound as they move.

He moans again as he covers his eyes with his right forearm, thinking of prolonging his nap, then he hears Reimu calling for him, but ignores the call.

A few seconds pass, a couple of footsteps get closer and closer, then stop when reaching the statue.

The dense boy refuses to pay attention to this in order to continue his peaceful nap, then Reimu sweetly says "there you are my darling. We've been looking all over for you, Ail my love."

His eyes burst open underneath his forearm, his muscles tense up, his limbs turn cold, his heart pounds his chest hard and threatens to break through his ribs, all while the words "m_y darling,"_ and "_Ail my love_" echo inside his mind several times a second.

He uncovers his eyes and sees Reimu Hakurei, a girl with long black hair and brown eyes looking down at him with the most angelic of smiles he has ever seen, and even dares to think it's rivaling Sanae's.

She adorns her beautiful straight and wavy hair with an oversized white ribbon, and wears a common brown kimono with long detached sleeves, and a pair of geta sandals.

To the girl's right is Rika Onkamikami, whom has long wavy brown hair, light blue eyes, small white wings, and like Reimu, she's wearing a common brown kimono and geta sandals.

The boy springs on his seat, stares at the two girls for almost a minute, the black haired girl sweetly asking "honey, what's wrong?", then he smiles at the two girls and asks "Reimu? Rika? I-is that really you?"

He quickly raises a suspicious eyebrow, crosses his arms over his chest, and asks "is this another plot to take me away from Sanae?"

The two girls take a step back, stare at each other, the black haired girl takes her step forward again, and looking tenderly into Ail's eyes she says "don't move, darling. Just. don't. move."

The boy may be dense, but he knows a death threat stare when he sees one, no matter how covered in sweetness it is, so he remains motionless while Reimu gently passes her hand all over his head.

He winces when she touches the back of his head, and almost triumphantly, the girl says "ah-hah! He bumped his head again. Hard!"

Rika sighs with exasperation and says "not again! Let's take him home and fix him up...", rolls her eyes and finishes "_again!_"

The shock-struck boy can only blink as he is lifted off the ground by his arms, and helped by the winged girl and the shrine maiden deeper into the village, instead of flying to the shrine, as he was expecting.

Mere minutes later, they arrive to a cozy house set between several other houses, and the first thing he notices is the walls look like they've been patched with several wood planks that don't even match, the roof has a small hole on it, and seems to be made of a mixture of metal and wooden plates, and the entrance door itself is a rose curtain, instead of a sliding door, like the other houses.

He's helped inside the dark house, which happens to be surprisingly bigger inside, and is sat in front of the small dinner table that sits in the middle of the first room upon entry.

The girls notice the lost and confused look in his eyes as he looks around the house, as though it is new to him, then Reimu whispers to Rika "if this keeps up, we'll have to take him to the doctor. He's acting weirder than last time."

The winged girl nods, then rushes to the back, while the black haired girl sits next to the boy, and with concern, she softly asks "Ail, honey, what's wrong? You look like you're lost inside that head of yours. What happened? Is there anything I can do to help?"

Anilan looks into the girl's loving eyes, gets lost in that warm and loving gaze, and does what any sane person that's just about to lose it would do.

He grabs her by the shoulders, shakes the girl up a bit, and desperately exclaims "Reimu, this isn't funny! Why aren't we in the shrine? What is this place? Why aren't you and Rika in your shrine maiden uniforms? Why do you keep calling me pet names as though we were a couple?"

He suddenly notices a golden wedding ring on his left hand, starts to sweat bullets, releases the girl to get a closer look at the ring, then softly asks "wh-why do I have a wedding ring? W-who is..."

As he looks at Reimu, the back of his head starts to bother him, like telling him to not panic, to play along, that everything is not what it seems, and yet he still gets pale when the girl with the adorable pouting face shows him her golden wedding ring on her left hand and smiles tenderly.

His heart wants to burst, he wants to run away, screaming, call for Sanae, maybe bash his head on something solid in order to fix his scrambled brain, but something in his mind helps him calm down.

He takes a deep breath, relaxes himself, looks at Reimu's beautiful shining face, and says "so... we're married."

The girl's smile, though beautiful, seems pained as she nods in assent, and with a more serene look, she asks "so, it's finally coming back to you?"

* * *

Moments later, Ail is wincing and gritting his teeth, while Rika gently taps the back of his head with a alcohol-soaked, bloodied cotton ball she has on a pair of metal forceps.

At the same time, Reimu lovingly and gently cleans his face with a small cloth, and by the looks of said cloth and the water bowl she's using, it is disgustingly dirty.

As she finishes cleaning his chin, she grips it and holds him, stares into his eyes, narrows her left eye, and suspiciously says "Ail, what happened? There's something different about you. You seem more... relaxed and calmer than usual. Like before."

Something clicks at the back of his head, and a warning starts repeating itself in his mind, "_Calm her down. Don't upset her! Do NOT upset Reimu or Rika!_"

Listening to that voice, the dense one smiles, places a hand on his forehead, and says "y-yeah, I do feel different. M-maybe I should go see the doctor."

The suspicion in the black haired girl quickly dissolve, and is replaced by strong worry.

She puts the bowl with the cloth on the table, holds the boy by the face, crawls closer and quickly kisses him on the lips, and says "I knew it! You really did hit your head too hard. Come! _Come!_ I'll take you to the village's doctor immediately!"

Ail places his hand on her bare shoulder, and this seems to melt the girl on his lap almost immediately, and not really paying attention to that reaction, he smiles at her and asks "Reimu h-hon..ney? Um, can I go by myself? I feel strong enough, and maybe I'll get all better if I walk there and just... sort out my thoughts."

He yelps and winces again when Rika taps him with the cotton ball, then the winged girl says "are you sure? That doesn't sound safe to me, and you'd just be worrying Missis Reimu. I can't have that!"

The boy remains silent for a moment, trying to come up with a good excuse to go by himself, then notices the small mess and dust around the house, and says "look, I just don't want to be a bother. I am sure you two are eager to get this place cleaned up, and besides, I don't feel dizzy, I remember where we live, and more importantly, that I am married to my darling Reimu."

The black haired girl suddenly springs from the boy's lap, screeching and cheering happily, then grabs his face, coos while looking at him in the eyes, then suddenly starts pecking his cheek with repeated kisses before releasing him, hugging him, and saying "I'm so happy!"

After composing herself, Reimu stands besides Rika, and eagerly sings "alright, we'll take care of the house! You go to that doctor and make sure your brain is on straight! I'll have your favorite meal waiting for when you get home~"

Ail stands up with a sheepish smile, chuckles nervously, licks his lips, and exclaims "mmm~ I'll look forward to that! Heh, in fact, I'll go right now, so that I can return sooner!"

The happy wife cups her hands together next to her chest, then suddenly blows a kiss to the boy, which he pretends to catch and kiss, then blows another back to her, making her coo with delight while he steps out of the house.

He walks away as fast as he can without making it look like he's trying to run away, and when he's finally far away enough, he hides behind a house and grips his heart, starts sweating profusely, his eyes lose focus, and all he does is breathe through his mouth.

After a while, he recovers himself, and yet still feels like shaking as he asks himself "what's the meaning of this? Why are Reimu and Rika living in the village now? What happened to the shrine, to Reimu, why are we married? What happened? Ugh! And what's with this nagging at the back of my head?"

He takes a deep and calming breath of air, tries to think about Sanae and Budou, though only blurry images appear in his mind, and a sense of dread takes over when he even thinks of visiting the Moriya Shrine.

He opens his eyes with a gasp, then says "a spell! A spell! Someone put a spell on me, but who, and why? Argh! What should I do! ? ...KYO!"

The boy takes off on his feet and runs straight toward the western exit of the village, somehow forgetting he can fly.

As he runs through the market, he notices many dirty glares from the humans and the few youkai there, and some of the men even hiss threateningly, as if looking for a fight with the dense one, but he ignores these threats and stares and continues on his way.

He reaches Kyo's house, a two-story house with weathered white paint peeling from the wooden walls, its porch looks about ready to crumble, the blue roof looks weathered, but whole, and though some of the windows on the first floor are clean, the rest are covered in dust and moss.

As he looks at the run-down house, he wonders what happened, and even hesitates, but he forces himself to take a deep breath, and shouts "KYO~! Hey, Kyo! Are you there!?"

No answer, though he swears he sees someone inside, so the takes another hesitant and deep breath, and shouts "KYO~ MISS LUNA~ MISS MEDICINE~! Anyone?"

He hears a footstep to his right, looks toward the sound, but all he sees is a black shadow forcing itself to his face, and sending him flying on his back to the unforgiving ground after a blunt blow to the cheek.

He quickly lifts his head while rubbing his right cheek, and gasps as he smiles with delight.

In front of him stands Luna Rivers, who has long silver hair with red highlights tied into a ponytail with a green ribbon, silver eyes, a star-shaped birth mark on her right cheek, and wears a dark-blue dress with white lycra shorts underneath, and her belt with her two swords around her waist.

She rubs her fist as she glares hatefully at the boy, and speaks through her teeth. "You stupid shit-head, what the _hell_ do you think you are doing?"

* * *

The girl walks closer to the boy, holding her right sword by the hilt while saying "you have a lot of nerve, Ail. Calling out his name like that. I should slit your damned throat and bleed you for a week!"

The boy's smile fades when he realizes the trouble he's really in, and with a terrified look in his eyes, he nervously asks "w-wait, Luna, what's the matter? Why are you so mad at me for?"

She launches herself towards the dense boy and bumps her forehead against his, pokes him hard on the chest, and furiously exclaims "because you were just calling his name out loud! Do you think it's funny? DO YOU? **Do you know how much it hurts?**"

Ail frowns as he pushes his head against the girl's and exclaims "what the hell is wrong with me calling for my friend, you lunatic?"

The silver haired girl's face shows her sudden surprise, then she grabs the dense one's face and forces him to look at her in the eyes, and as she squints those eyes she mutters "...kidding me... Is he just...?"

Luna pushes him back hard, forcing him to stop himself before crashing on his bump on the floor, and once again holds her sword by the hilt as she stands three feet away from Ail, then looks toward the house to try and hide her pained look.

She takes a deep breath, asks "I wonder? What would you do, or say, if I told you K...", gulps and forces her tears to stay in her eyes, and finishes "that Kyo is dead?"

The color on Ail's entire skin seems to flush out of his very body, his eyes loose all focus as he starts to cry, his hope fades, his will shatters, and all becomes painfully visible through his dulled eyes.

Luna raises an eyebrow and stares at the boy with curiosity and confusion, and in a high-pitched tone of voice, she asks "really? You really forgot?"

The boy snarls as he gets on his feet, the hair on the back of his head stands as his rage rockets up to his head, then he shouts "THAT'S NOT FUNNY, LUNA! He... he can't be dead!"

He points toward the house's second floor and exclaims "I just saw him up there, by that window, so cut it out with the sick jokes! I need to talk to him!"

The girl points at the window, and furiously shouts "THAT'S MEDICINE, YOU RETARD! What the _HELL_ is the MATTER WITH YOU!?"

She unsheathes her sword and starts walking around the dense boy, staring at him with a dangerously venomous look; as if looking for an opening to attack; yet speaks softly, "you must have really hit your head **real** hard this time. Look at that window again, please."

He obediently looks toward the window and gazes upon Medicine Melancholy, a sad-looking little girl with short blonde hair, blue eyes, and a dark red shirt with a red skirt looking down to him from the window on the second floor.

When he realizes his mistake, tears start flowing fast down his cheeks as he looks at the silver haired girl, then asks "h-how? Wh-when?"

The girl lifts her blade to her chest and shows great hatred toward the boy, yet continues speaking calmly. "I never thought you were one to forget such things. You cried like a baby for days. It happened almost a year ago, after that accident in the village, where a man used a very dangerous invention from a kappa against us. A rainbow gun, or something like that."

Ail shakes his head, holds his temples as he closes his eyes, then cries "but that's impossible! He passed Komachi's test!"

"Shut up, Ail!"

"He became stronger! He challenged me to a sparring match! He-he... You and him were going to-"

Something inside his mind tells him to shut up, and just in time, for Luna has launched herself at him with her sword raised and aiming to cut his neck.

He jumps away, saving himself from the deadly blow, and tries to summon light onto his right hand, but when he fails do so, he raises his wrist, pulls the sweater's sleeve up, and realizes he's not wearing the blessed bracelet.

He gulps when realizing this, whimpers as Luna comes running to him, roaring as she readies her two swords for a quick neck cut, then instinctively jumps away from the strike and shoots as many blue and white petal-shaped bullets as he can.

The girl just moves around and blocks some of the bullets with her sword, then growls after the danmaku stops, and says "you asshole! Stop acting like you know nothing! You were there! You saw what happened! _HOW HE FAILED_!"

Tears of both fear and despair roll down his eyes as he shouts back "BUT I DON'T! Luna, I swear, I saw him succeed! He is alive! I talked to him about your wedding! I... wait. When was...?"

He tries to remember when was the last time he saw Kyo, holds his head and grips his hair as though in pain, grunts as he doubles over in his attempt to force those memories out of his head, then something round, blunt and cold strikes his head on the side, crumbling upon going in contact with him, and his full attention now turns left.

Luna is on the ground on her knees, holding her eyes as she cries and sobs inconsolably, and on her side is Medicine, doing her best to comfort the girl.

After noticing his stare, the blonde picks up a ball of dirt and surrounds it with a black mist that is her deadliest poison, stares hatefully at the boy, and in a dangerous tone says "get the hell out of here before I shove this down your throat."

Ail is not really sure how, or why, but he sets off running to the opposite direction, panting rapidly while holding his head and crying.

He doesn't understand why things are so jumbled up, why he remembers things differently than what they truly are.

"Was I dreaming? Did I dream my whole life until now!?"

As he runs past the market, talking to himself, questioning his every thought, he starts to feel fatigued, drops on his knees, and as he breathes through his mouth, he thinks "_what if I just woke up from a dream? What if all of those wonderful things I thought were real are just images? What is going on with me?_"

Something cold and blunt strikes him on the back of his neck, causing him to groan as he falls to the ground, and the world around him turns black.

* * *

**_Some Hours Earlier_**

Somewhere outside the borders of reality, Ail stands nervously stiff in the middle of an endless grass field that's littered with varied flowers that make six beds; each big enough for him to sleep on.

Shikieiki Yamaxanadu, a girl with green hair that appears longer to the right, blue eyes, that wears a blue hat with golden emblems, a long blue shirt with golden plates on the shoulders, a long black skirt, and adorns herself with white and red ribbons on her hair, elbows, and skirt border, stands in front of the boy, covering her mouth with her Rod of Remorse, a golden item that looks like a sword with inscriptions on it.

Next to her is Yukari Yakumo, who has long flowing blonde hair tied with four red ribbons on the bottom tips, purple eyes, and wears a long deep-purple dress.

All three of them stand in silence, feeling awkward of the situation, the two girls knowing well what they are about to do to that boy, their friend, and although yamas like Eiki shouldn't feel these kinds of attachments, she can't help but feel the awkwardness getting to her.

The gap youkai, on the other hand, looks as though ready to start crying like fool then suddenly launches herself on the boy, hugs him tight while rubbing her cheek against his face, and in a motherly tone, says "you be good now! Don't do anything naughty in there! Clean your underwear every day, brush your teeth, and come back to us as that sweet, wise child I miss so much!", effectively breaking the awkward silence.

The dense one manages to break free from the youkai's motherly grasp, takes several deep breaths of fresh air while holding his chest, then looks at her with a blushing face that was caused by her pressing her womanly chest against him, and says "r-right. Heh, thank you Miss Yukari. And don't worry, I promise, I will not fail."

After he recovers, and the blonde takes her place at the yama's left, Shikieiki sighs, turns sideways to reveal a particular bed of red flowers, points at it with her golden rod, and says "then, my friend, it's time you went inside."

The boy can't help but gulp with fright, but he nods and complies quickly.

As he walks toward the bed, Eiki holds his shoulder, stopping him mid-way, and when he looks at her, he can see some form of worry in those blue eyes.

Regardless of how she feels, she calmly says "Ail, the girls in there know a very different you. Most of them _will_ be hostile towards you."

He shivers with fright, and she feels this, but regardless of this, he nods and bravely says "I will be extra careful then."

He makes it to the bed, sits on the edge, admires how firm, yet soft this bed made of flowers is, and is tempted to lie down, but he looks at the girls looking back at him with pity in their eyes, and waits for them to speak.

Yukari opens her fan to hide her face again, and with dangerous eyes she says "you don't understand. Once you are in that other world, many facts and some of the instructions we may give to you now will be hidden in your subconscious. To you, it will all feel as though it's just another day in your life here in Gensokyo, but like Miss Shiki said, most of the girls there will be hostile. Lethal even."

Ail's face turns a bit pale after such a revelation, but looking at the yama, he knows there is more, so he gulps his hard-beating heart down his throat, nods, and nervously asks "anything else you need to tell me, Miss Eiki?"

Shikieiki nods with a serene, yet stern look, and says "as you already know, the world you are in requires you to accomplish a certain goal to leave it, but every time you fail said goal, that world will reset, and the memories of your last failure will be lost."

"Though not completely," quickly adds Yukari. "You won't remember them at will, but your subconscious will, and it's that subconscious knowledge that will keep you away from the place of your prior failures, unless you REALLY goof up and have to repeat the whole thing again."

Ail starts to shiver as his body turns cold, yet after another gulp, he manages to nod and with some difficulty say "I-I-I... A-alright. M-Must not f-f-fail."

The gap youkai walks over to the boy, presses his frozen-in-fear face against her stomach, then gently pets his head as she would to Ran while saying "don't worry. You'll do fine. I just know it. You have already regained some of that wisdom you lost some time ago."

Eiki nods, sighs to relieve her own tension, then says "now Ail, listen carefully. These instructions I am about to give you will be in your subconscious too, but will be always present when needed, for without these, you will never succeed while in there."

She waits for a moment for the boy to nod; tickling the blonde's stomach as he does; then continues "your mission in there, Ail, is to convince at least _one_ of the girls, **_other_** than Reimu or Rika, that you are not the man they _think_ you are. This, however, will not be easy, as you are aware of, due to the girls' hostility towards you."

Again, the boy nods, gulps nervously, but is patted again by the gap youkai, calming him down, and making him wonder why is she treating him so nicely, though considers his situation, and fear claims his heart again.

The yama stares at the nervous boy, somehow calming him down with her gaze, then continues "now bear with me Ail, for this is very important for you to know. Your failures will be met if the following reasons were to occur."

He wants to brace himself for what's to come, but Shiki doesn't give him the chance, and continues "you will fail if you are killed, or if a single one of those you call your friends dies, _or_ if you emotionally upset Reimu, Rika, Budou, or Sanae. If any of these failures were to be met, whether to your knowledge or not, accidental, or with cause, the world will reset shortly after, if not immediately."

The boy takes a very deep breath after hearing his loved ones' names, then Yukari places her hand on his head to get his attention, then says "one very important thing you must know. Your subconscious will keep you away from the Moriya Shrine Ail, and for very good reasons. Please, whatever you do, whatever may happen in there, you **_keep. away. from that shrine_**, you understand! Do not go there, for any reason."

He can see the fear in her eyes as she speaks of the Moriya Shrine, and after an erratic and shivering breath, he looks at her firmly and says "I'll stay away from there. I promise."

"Good," she chirps as she taps his nose with her fan, then walks away.

Both girls stand back in their original positions, stare at the dense boy, then he takes another deep breath, exhales, then nods and says "thank you for the warnings. I guess I better lie down now?"

Both girls nod slowly, the boy nods back, and as he accommodates himself on the bed, both yama and youkai says "**good luck Ail,**" to which he smiles as he sets his head on the group of white roses that grow to make a pillow for him.

He closes his eyes, and instead of the blackness of his closed lids, he is met with soothing white light, a soft ringing in his ears, and then he can faintly hear as Shikieiki says "become wiser and stronger than ever, Ail. ...to your heart's content..."

The boy sighs, his body lifts off the bed itself, then two sparks of white light appear above the two girls' hands, to which they reach for immediately.

They both take their hands back from the sparks, and hold a particular item each; Shikieiki holds a circular object that looks like a plastic translucent white disk with a circular button on the center, and Yukari holds a small pyramid made of the same material with a triangular button on the side, both glowing blue inside their translucent covers.

They inspect the odd objects, then the yama presses the button, the little contraptions start to glow green, then says "and so it begins."

Yukari looks sadly at her pyramid, and in a sad tone she says "I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy."

* * *

**_Back At Present_**

Ail groans as his consciousness returns, feeling his head pulsating painfully as he tries to open his eyes again.

When he succeeds in opening them; although just barely; he is met with a pair of white socks and tatami floor mats.

He gasps, manages to push his upper body up, and says "no! No, no, no, no! That dream! What did it mean? Yukari, Shikieiki, what did you tell me!? Gah, why can't I remember!?"

He punches the tatami under him several times, pants after unleashing his weak rage, then says to himself "come on you stupid brain, remember! What did they _TELL_ you? Why am I so confused!? Why are things different that from what I remember!?"

"That's enough out of you, you wretch!" commands a girl that appears to be in front, and out of reach.

Ail rolls left very suddenly, avoiding a baton to the neck, and stares up with surprise at Kotohime, a girl with long and bushy red hair tied with a yellow ribbon into a half-ponytail, red eyes, who wears a noble's purple kimono.

He turns his gaze toward the source of the voice before, and there sits before him, behind a tall wooden desk, Akyuu Hieda, a girl with purple eyes and short purple hair adorned with a pink flower, that wears a green kimono-like vest with long yellow sleeves, and a dark-red skirt.

Both girls stare at him as though they were looking at the most disgusting villainous scum ever witnessed, and in a cold tone of voice, the Child of Miare commands "restrain him! I don't want him getting away again!"

He quickly finds himself being hoisted up on to his feet by two pair of hands around his arms, and is now looking upon the angry face of the Hieda girl, and for some reason, that glare, which should be cute to him as he remember it, fills him with fear.

The girl snarls after a quick and disturbing dark chuckle, and sounding disgusted, she says "we finally got you, you wicked monster! It was all a matter of time before you finally let your guard down. Kotohime, you've done excellent job. Now the sentence can be carried out."

The nervous boy trembles as he looks around himself and realizes he is in Akyuu's mansion, though inside a secluded, well-lit, windowless, round room he's never had the displeasure of seeing until this day.

The air inside is humid, heavy, and quite displeasing, but it seems he's the only one that thinks so, for the rest of the people in the room seem to be fresh and comfortable.

Holding him are a pair of servants, a human male and a female, both wearing standard white kimonos similar to the other two servants in the room, and giving him a very venomous glare without stop to his right, is Kotohime.

He looks at Akyuu with his most pathetic and confused look, and as though begging, he asks "please, I don't understand! Why does everyone hate me so much? What have I done?"

"Don't play dumb! We all know how wicked you are," sternly replies the Child of Miare. "Guards, make sure you don't loosen your grip on him!"

A pair of hands in a white robe suddenly slip around Akyuu's belly, and from behind her, a servant girl with brown hair tied to a bun with a brass pin, light-brown eyes, that has a picture of the Hieda girl sewn on the left breast of her kimono, coos and moans teasingly, then sweetly says "come on Lady Hieda, give him a chance. Just look at that pathetic face of his."

The purple haired girl growls as her face turns red, she trembles with rage, grabs a golden washtub from beneath her table, then smashes it on the girl's face while furiously shouting "dammit all Minako, this is not a damned game!"

She points at the held boy, then angrily says "he is a monster! He almost destroyed the way of life Reimu worked so hard to establish for Gensokyo."

"Amongst _other_, more sinister crimes of very distasteful natures," adds the princess policewoman, speaking as though merely talking about the boy leaves a bad taste in her mouth.

The sobbing girl rubs her nose as tears flow down her cheeks, and merely nods quietly as she stands behind her mistress again.

Ail is scared beyond the capabilities of self control, yet manages to hide this fright well, though is weak on the knees and is giving his captors some trouble, but they aren't about to let him go.

He manages to moisten his dry mouth, then asks "wh-what do you mean? M-Miss Hieda, I don't understand. Please, you have to believe me."

The purple haired girl's hateful face twists with anger as she shouts "SILENCE! Everyone knows you're a despicably good liar. That's how you got the moon rabbit after all."

His knees finally give way, and even with the guards holding him, he falls on the floor while exasperatedly saying "Reisen too? But... Kyo, and Reimu! This makes no sense!"

Meanwhile, Rika Onkamikami skillfully lands on the roof of the cylindrical building, making sure to not disturb a single guard, and upon reaching her goal, she opens a door on said roof while whispering "Missis Reimu was right. He IS in trouble."

Inside the building, Ail continues "I shouldn't be married! I'm supposed to be with Sanae! Reimu and Rika should be back at the Hakurei Shrine! Kyo's supposed to be alive! Now I'm being called a monster by you, of all people! Please, someone explain to me what's going on!"

The white-winged girl gasps upon hearing such revelations from the boy, and thinks of going back to her mistress, but something on the back of her head asks her to stay, in hopes there's something redeeming, and so as not to disturb her Lady's heart.

Back inside, after a long and tense pause, Akyuu sighs while rubbing the bridge of her nose, then says "fine. I supposed I can summarize some of your crimes before I dictate your sentence."

"Better hurry, before Rika gets here. I don't want to involve her in this mess," edges Kotohime, to which the Child of Miare nods to dismissively.

* * *

After arranging all the paperwork in front of herself, Akyuu stares at Ail, whom is now seated on a crude wooden chair, and coldly mocks "alright, since you can't seem to... _remember_ what you have done, I'll just refresh your memories a little bit."

The boy's only reaction is a nod as he bends over and stares at his feet, as though wanting to turn into a ball and hide away from the world.

There is a smug smile of satisfaction on Kotohime upon seeing the dense boy like that, but after seeing something in those eyes of his her smile vanishes, quickly replaced by a frown.

The purple haired girl clears her throat, then says "right, let's cut down to the chase and be done with this! I'll read your crimes in no particular order, though I will try to save the worst for last."

She picks up a sheet of paper from a face-down pile, and reads "first would be your attack on Makai, which caused a bloody battle right here in our peaceful village. Casualties, though low, were painful. Two children, and the eastern carpenter's loving wife were amongst the worst losses."

"Also, there were those disgusting, lecherous things you did to the Makaian girls. We couldn't help but sympathize with them, you disgusting monster!"

Ail is about to say something, but Akyuu is quicker in picking the next sheet, and continues "oh yes, this one was recent. I still wish I could gut you right here and now for this one! The underhanded humiliation of Keine Kamishirasawa in plain daytime, and right in front of her own students!"

"I WOULD NEVER DO SOMETHING SO DISGUSTING-"

"SHE HAS TRIED TO COMMIT SUICIDE SEVERAL TIMES," shouts the girl over the hated boy's voice until he shuts up, then continues "but Mokou of Fujiwara is now taking care of her, and she seems to be recovering, albeit slowly."

Kotohime has her intense eyes on the boy, but remains in place seeing as he has shut his mouth.

The chronicler picks up the next sheet, winces, and in a disgusted tone says "the, ugh, _defilement_ of Byakuren Hijiri, which brought the wrath of her followers on us, and the banning of all humans from entering the temple-"

"WHAT! ? Defil- ...THAT'S A LIE! BYAKUREN IS ONE OF MY BEST FRIENDS!"

Ail's sudden outburst earns him a karate-chop on the side of the neck by Kotohime, and a forceful tasting of the tatami mat under his chair.

He struggles against the girl, and almost succeeds in knocking her off himself, but Akyuu barks a command, and both stop their struggle.

The boy looks at the purple haired girl, who immediately says "you! You will look at me while I speak. Now then..."

She picks the next sheet, while the cop girl is sitting the boy and forces him to look forward, then looks at the dense one straight into the eyes.

"This next crime almost cost us our relationship with Eientei," begins the chronicler, making sure to keep her purple eyes on the boy's. "You lied to their Moon Rabbit and twisted her mind! After that, you let her drop from that bubble you put her in, and didn't even bother to help her up. The aliens were outraged!"

Ail wants to complain again, but all he can do is try to resist the tears welling in his shivering eyes.

Akyuu watches with some form of satisfaction at the boy's face, then grabs another sheet, and says "the attempted murder of Remilia Scarlet that cost us another unnecessary battle."

She grabs another, and reads "the destruction of half of the buildings in the market."

She grabs another, and reads "challenging the authority of Kotohime, Renko, and Maribel!"

She goes for another, and reads "the lewd attacks on Satori Komeiji and Rin Kaenbyou!"

She notices the despair in the boy's eyes, raises an eyebrow, narrows her eyes, and asks "what in the world? You really don't remember any of this? Did you hit your head or something?"

Ail sniffles as he shakes his head, and says "no! I swear, I would never do any of those things. For Suwako's sake, Remilia and Byakuren are of my very best friends! All those girls you mentioned are my friends! I would never harm them!"

"He's lying," barks Kotohime, to which Akyuu just waves dismissively to and nonchalantly says "obviously. I just wanted to see his reaction."

Her face quickly becomes sour as she picks the sheet of paper underneath the remainder of the pile, and darkly says "_this_ is the crime that makes me the sickest."

"The seduction, soiling, and then forceful marriage of the Shrine Maiden of Paradise, Reimu Hakurei!"

Outside the room, Rika closes the door, holding her open mouth with her hand, lets her head hang as she allows sorrow to claim her, then quickly steels herself, looks toward the south, then whispers "My Lady Reimu must know!"

Inside the room, the confusion in Ail's eyes seems to amuse the police princess and the chronicler, whom fail to notice the rage beginning to rise and boil.

Akyuu sighs, then continues "we still don't know _how_ you did it, but we know Reimu would have never done what you made her do with you. She was clear on her duties as the Hakurei Shrine Maiden. We also know you put her under some kind of spell in order to marry her, thus endangering Gensokyo further."

Kotohime clicks her tongue, then angrily says "we were LUCKY that Renko and Maribel were able to take up the job, or there would be no Gensokyo today. We are _even luckier_ they managed to stabilize the spell card rules!"

"Yes, yes," says he chronicler in a monotone tone, then looks at the dense boy, and says "the point is, Ail, you have no friends. You are a monstrous villain, and after today, this land will suffer you no more."

The officer woman yelps as she is blown to the wall behind herself and Ail, then the boy stands up and starts shooting explosive orange orbs the size of his own head all over the room, forcing Akyuu's guards to run for cover.

He quickly switches for the smaller, but faster blue and white petals, and starts shooting down those running servants, including Minako, who used herself to protect the Child of Miare from a spray of bullets.

The chronicler finds herself rolling left to avoid another spray of bullets, then is surprised with an exploding orange orb just above her destined stopping spot.

Ail turns around and shoots a spray of white lasers at the princess police just as she was about to shoot him, knocks her back and forces the door open with her body, while he simply moves right to avoid the weak red bullet she managed to shoot.

He turns around again, walks over to the cowering Akyuu, bends his knees next to her, then says "I don't know what kind of **_sick_** little game you guys are playing, but it's gone on too far. Reimu is like a _SISTER_ to me. Keine is a friend, as is Byakuren, and Reisen, and-! The only girl for me is Sanae, and you all know this!"

He gets up and walks away, but stops when the chronicler coughs a laugh, and realizing he's still there, she says "oh, Sanae; that poor girl. The way you destroyed her was so inhumane! Tch! You claim she's the only girl for you, but the facts are there, boy! You are a villainous monster, and noting will convince me otherwise!"

Ail just glares at the girl, tempted to hit her with a blue bullet on the head, but simply turns around and runs away towards and unknown destination after jumping over the moaning police princess.

* * *

Ail finds himself running through the village again, however this time he actually has the villagers alerted to him, and is currently dodging waves of danmaku by jumping between houses and flying over roofs.

Due to him being a target, flying for too long makes him easier to spot, and staying grounded too long leaves him vulnerable to traps and ambushes.

He looks for somewhere to run to, but Reimu's house is out of the question, lest he wants to disturb her with an angry mob.

Exiting the village seems almost impossible at the time due to so many eyes everywhere, and hiding has proven futile several times already.

He finds a large building at the center of the village and enters long before anybody sees him; to his luck; and while panting inside the dark and large structure, he holds his chest and suppresses several coughs for fear of getting caught too soon.

He walks backward further into the structure, while saying to himself "maybe I can think for a bit now. Dammit, if I'm caught now I'll have to fight my way out of here. Tch! I'm screwed. Calm down... Calm down."

"Argh, but why all of this? I suddenly wake up and find out I'm married to Reimu. Not only that, but I seem to be one of those villains in my dream world, or worst!"

He fails to notice a female figure behind himself as he turns around and holds his head tight and says "no, no, no, no! No way in hell! Remilia, Byakuren, Keine, Reisen, Satori, Shinki... they are all my friends! I would never harm them!"

He gasps and opens his eyes wide, and says "wait a minute! I remember I solved the problem with Reimu! Yes, I did! She and I _can't_ be married! Yes, I'm sure now, this is a drea-"

"Who's there!?" Apprehensively calls a very familiar voice.

Terror creeps back onto Ail's face as he turns around the very moment Keine Kamishirasawa turns on a bright lamp that, thought dim, exposes him to the teacher.

She has long silver hair with blue highlights, brown eyes, and wears a funny-looking hat that looks like a house with inscribed red glyphs, and a long blue and white dress.

Both boy and girl turn ghostly pale and jump away from each other with a yelp, the history teacher slamming herself against a wall, while the dense boy crashes against one of the student's desks.

Keine's breath becomes fast and erratic, and it becomes obvious she's mortified of the boy's presence, as she starts to choke on herself after many quick pants.

Ail manages to scramble on his feet, and looks upon the girl's terrified face to quickly learn that he has no way of reasoning with her, so he starts taking very slow steps back to the exit.

As he does, he raises his hands defensively, and very slowly and softly says "I'm not going to hurt you, I am just going to leave, alright. Look at my eyes and my hands. Look as how they get away from you. No reason to panic."

Keine starts holding her face with her hands and claws her temples and her cheeks with her nails while breathing hard and moaning, then suddenly starts to cry "please no. S-stop! Not in front of them! NOOOOO!"

The boy winces when he sees how that girl starts clawing herself viciously and starts cutting her own skin with those nails, then panics and rushes over to her while shouting "KEINE, STOP! You're hurting yourself!"

He quickly finds himself diving under a ball of blue fire that was aimed at his face, then looks back as that flame starts to spread around the desks at a rapid pace.

Without looking back at his attacker, he quickly rushes over to the fire and uses the explosion from his own focused danmaku blasts to counter the strong flames, though doing so is also helping the already extensive collateral damage.

After the fire is off, the boy flinches after hearing another very familiar voice say "so, you didn't get enough last time. You had to come back to soil my Keine a second time. Well I won't have it, Dirt."

Ail's mind screams at him, begging him to run like a bat out of hell, and yet his body fails him, and he ends up turning around while trembling hard, to look upon the furious glare of Mokou Fujiwara.

The immortal with red eyes, extremely long light-lilac hair adorned with charms on the sides, and who wears a burned, long-sleeved white shirt and a pair of red overall pants with seals on them, holds the broken Keine in a tight embrace, and shushes her while said girl mumbles incoherently.

Anilan takes that one step back, but foolishly whispers "Mokou, I-", getting an orange flame thrown to his left and stopping him from escaping.

"You're going to say 'I would never do that', and then tell me you 'just want to leave'," begins the immortal, speaking in a very dark undertone.

She calms her friend down with one last rub to the head, followed with a soft shush, sets her down on a safe corner, then walks over towards the boy, igniting her flames on her hands while punching them together in front of her chest.

"Mokou... I swear, I would never do that to Keine. Sh-she's my friend! I swear, I don't know what's going on, but whoever did that to her, it wasn't me!"

Mokou scoffs while grinning smugly at the frightened boy, spits at his feet, and while taking slow steps toward her hated target, she says "I used to trust you. You were special, different, or at least I thought you were. In the end, you were just another one of those perverts waiting for the right chance to strike. You just made the mistake of attacking my only friend in the world, and for humiliating her like that, I'll make sure you survive long enough for you to beg me for death in front of your own wife!"

Ail's instincts kick in on high gear and he unleashes an insane wave of water danmaku against the immortal's fireballs, thus creating an accidental mist thick enough to allow him escape.

He makes a run-for-it to the door, but is cut off by a random blue flame, and by some luck, the impact causes an ornament on a wall to fall, and he can hear Mokou roar as she crashes against the desks besides him, possibly after missing an attack intended for him when aiming for the noise.

He hopes the distraction is enough for him to get away, but then he hears the roof breaking, a piece of lumber strikes him on his wound on the back of his head, weakening his entire body and knocking him to the ground, and to his horror, someone, a woman, quickly wraps her hands around his chest, and takes off to the sky with him, covering him up with something soft, yet strong.

* * *

Ail is still too dazed form that last blow to the head to fight back against his new captor, and waits for whatever fate may have in store for him now, though is slowly calculating an escape plan.

"_Can I fly? ...Yes, I can feel my energy. Heh, when was the last time I manipulated energy like this? ...Then again, has anything that I think had happened before be **real** to begin with?_"

As he arranges his thoughts, he can feel soft wings shift as they they are descending, and thinks "_alright, I just need to feel out where I am as soon as I land, then I can figure out where to fly to._"

They land; whomever his captor is sets him surprisingly gently on the ground, and as he starts to work his plan out, the girl gently says "my lady, he's here, and he's safe like you requested," and promptly calms down when he realizes his captor is non-other than Rika Onkamikami.

He drops his plans of running away, and now focuses on gathering energy for himself, while Reimu replies "thank you," with a cracked voice.

"_She's been crying?_" questions the boy in his mind as he slowly gets on his elbows and knees.

He can hear as the maid embraces the black haired girl, sighs and says "be strong Missis Reimu," then walks away to the left, and hides behind a tree.

Anilan finally gathers enough energy to lift his head up and stand, and finds Reimu standing several feet in front of him, and just as he guessed, her eyes are red and swollen from her crying.

That loving look she had before is gone now, replaced by deep sorrow and anger, and this is hurting him greatly.

"Reimu?"

"DON'T!"

She cuts him off with a bark before he can sweet-talk his way out of that mess. She sniffles and gulps, then through a cracking voice she begins "what have you done? Have I been just a prize to you? A piece of meat? A toy, perhaps? Or is it that I'm the only thing stable in your life? ...Answer me, Anilan!"

The boy gulps; he knows that look, and he knows she is going to bomb him somehow, yet he risks his physical health and hesitantly asks "what? W-what are you talking about?"

"Rika told me everything that happened in that trial," begins the girl, her anger visibly rising with every word. "I... I knew about Keine. I also knew about Byakuren and Satori, but I was _blind_! I can't believe I convinced myself that you had been possessed. Hell, I even performed the exorcism myself while you were asleep!"

There is a short pause where the boy stares at her with surprise before the girl suddenly screams "I may not be a shrine maiden anymore, but I CAN STILL DO QUITE A LOT!"

"Keine, Reisen, Byakuren, Satori? Who else do you have in that sick harem you forcefully created? Marisa? Alice? Well, what do you have to say!? ...I gave up my LIFE FOR YOU! I GAVE YOU EVERYTHING I HAD TO OFFER AND MORE, ALL FOR YOU! How could you do this to me? *Sob* How could you do this to the one that loves you above everything else? Ail, you were EVERYTHING I HAD LEFT!"

Ail can feel the intense power hiding inside that girl, and begins to shiver with fear while instinctively raising an arm in defense, while at the same time having guilt creeping up from the pit of his stomach to the edge of his neck.

After he settles down and lowers his arm, he hesitates to look at her in the eyes, then sighs and cries "Reimu, what happened? Why aren't you a shrine maiden? Why? _WHEN_ did we get married? Reimu, I don't understand any of this? I thought Kyo was alive! Why is he dead?"

He looks at the crying girl with his own scared and teary eyes, and through his cracked voice says "Those you mentioned before, those girls are my friends. **I would never do anything to cause them pain!** And you. Reimu, you are like a very dear sister to me! I thought we had made that clear between us!"

Reimu gasps and clutches her chest as she takes a step away from her spot, and a few charms, as well as her gohei, all fall from inside her right sleeve.

Ail takes notice of the items dropped by his supposed wife, and notices the Fantasy Heaven spell card ready for use.

His eyes are hidden by the shadow from his hair, he drops on his knees that feel as though are full of lead, tears start flowing from his eyes, yet he smiles as he says "so, you were going to seal me for good. Heh, I see. Reimu, I don't know what has happened; I don't know why I have memories so different than those everybody else seem to share, but it is clear to me..."

He looks up at her with a pained smile and glowing golden eyes, and says "but it is obvious I am just an abomination. Do it. Seal me up and let me be alone with my thoughts wherever you may send me. That is, if I'm alive afterward."

The crying girl looks surprised to the point of being shocked stiff in place, yet it's painfully obvious she's forcing herself to move toward him.

She stares at her supposed husband with doubt, stands right in front of him before kneeling, grabs hold of his face, then gives him a kiss.

She stops shortly after starting, yet remains locked against his lips while staring with great pain to the sky.

Tears start flowing down from her shocked eyes, she slowly pushes the boy away, holds her chest with both arms as she rapidly stands, and steps away from the boy.

Her breath cuts itself as she tries to speak, whispering questions to the air that are barely intelligible, but after looking into his blank face, she finally summons the strength to ask "who are you?"

She gulps to open up her tight throat, and whispers "you're not the man I married. You're someone else! Wh-who _are_ you?"

Ail looks at her straight in the eyes, inevitably starts to cry along with her, then whispers back "I don't know anymore."

Reimu grips her head, falls on her knees, allows herself to drop on the ground, and after a deep breath of air she begins to scream loudly enough to scare youkai and fairies alike away from the area.

Her screams become sobs as she cries out curses to the Hakurei god, to Kanako, so Suwako, to all deities she can think of, and Rika starts to cry inconsolably behind a tree a few feet away, feeling desperate and helpless again, feeling she's failed her Mistress.

Reimu screams Ail's name several times, then cries "it's all my fault! All my fault! The exorcism!"

The winged girl takes her family sword out of hiding, aims the blade at herself while Reimu screams curses and shoots bullets at Ail from the ground, then everything stops, and the entire world around them turns pure white.

* * *

Ail stirs about while on his back, apparently in mid air, and regains his consciousness feeling relaxed, healed and collected, as if nothing had ever happened to him in the first place.

The memories of what had just happened appear like a fuzzy screen in his mind, and although he knows it was something strong, he can't remember a thing of what happened, that is, until he opens his eyes.

He is inside the room he was in with Shikieiki and Yukari, only this time, the background appears to be covered with a white mist thick enough to be cut with a knife.

He remembers the incident inside the world he was just in, at the same time he remembers what he is supposed to be doing, and with a sigh, he says to himself "dammit, I failed that one miserably. Jeez, that was one hell of a mess."

"I'll say! And here I thought I made a pretty good wife too, and you just had to mess up that bad, huh."

The boy splutters as though neck-deep in water, even though his in mid-air, then manages to get up from his sitting position to look upon the Human Village's Reimu, smiling back at him and waving quite casually.

His heart goes on a fast beat as fear creeps into it, but the girl lifts a hand and says "calm down. I'm just here to clear up that brain of yours with the facts."

"Ail, _you_ may not remember, but the night of the small incident with the lust spell all those years ago, you and I fell in love with each other. Remilia wanted you too, but we fought, hard. In the end I won, and she joined our fates that very night."

She blushes and giggles as she looks away, then says "you looked so cute, all worried about us like that. You were so scared for me, and you took me home. You nursed me, even though I told you I was fine, and even Budou, Cirno and Lily agreed you were overreacting."

The dense boy gulps, his face turns a bit red, then he hesitantly asks "uhh, Reimu? What... exactly did we do that night?"

The girl smiles, coos, holds her bright red cheeks with her hands as she turns her face away, and happily says "well, after you shooed off the girls, you and I sealed our love."

Ail's face shines red so hard, even his hair seems to take a hint of reddish on it while he babbles incoherently.

He quickly recovers himself with a quick shake of his head, then asks "b-but what about Sanae? H-how could I do such a thing to her!? And to you! OH-NO! I'm a two-timer!"

Reimu giggles, though bitterly so, then says "yes, Sanae. I knew your heart, regardless of anything I did, was always with her, though you were quite the loving boyfriend and husband anyways, so I stopped caring about that fact."

After the inevitable giggle, her face darkens as a memory takes the front of her mind, and continues "still, after we did that, everything went down to hell. The barrier weakened considerably, and although I thought I would lose all my powers, all they did was diminish, but I couldn't hold the barrier in place."

"Yukari was so mad. I thought she was going to kill us both, but instead charged you with the task of finding someone capable of taking on the job of caring for the Hakurei barrier, at least until a suitable heir could be born. Renko and Maribel were there that day, they heard everything, and immediately offered themselves for the job. Yukari passed on the task to them, and we were forced to live in the Human Village."

"Lucky for us," says the boy, sounding relieved. "Still, what about Rika, and Sanae, and Budou?"

Reimu sighs as she holds her forehead on her hand, looks up at the boy, shrugs and says "Rika was stubborn. Even though she was dressed to work for the Hakurei Shrine and I wasn't, she insisted I was to be her master, and not Renko or Maribel! It was all so annoying at first, but you were the one to convince me to allow her to work for me, and from there, we three shared a very special bond."

There is a quick moment of silence and she adds "err, no, she never really wanted to participate with us during our love nights. Tch! And I really wanted her to. Alas, she still hasn't accepted."

"Uhh~..." Anilan's loss for words is understandable, and the girl just laughs at him for it.

After the laughs are taken care of, she sighs and continues "for years, you Rika and I lived quite happily in the village, Sanae and Budou stopped trying to steal you from me, and everything seemed to be going our way, ...until I found out there was something wrong with me."

Before he can ask, the black haired girl starts to cry, though speaks calmly, "we tried many times to have a child, but nothing ever happened, so I went to see Eirin, and it turns out... when Remilia changed our fate, she made me unable to bear a child. The Hakurei line was to remain broken from that day forth."

"It took me a very long time to recover, and during this time, something happened to _you_. I don't know what happened, exactly, but seeing me so pained angered you so much. You challenged Remilia to a death match; I heard word from some villagers that you broke Reisen, I heard whispers about you and Byakuren too, though I never learned what had happened."

Ail looks around the room as if searching for the answer, then says "well, whatever that other me did, it is something the _real_ me would never do, no matter how angry I get! All those people and youkai are my friends. Keine too! What that other me did to her was unforgivable, I would have never even thought of doing that!"

When he looks back at Reimu, he finds Keine there standing in her stead, with a small dagger stabbed on her chest, though clean of any blood.

The boy's eyes almost burst from the shock and sudden surprise, but the woman lifts her hand to calm him down, then, with a serene smile, she says "that is what happens to those that lose their way, and refuse to open their eyes and see their own wrongs."

She now stands right in front of him, gently holding his face as she looks at him in the eyes, and sweetly says "you were so distraught and blinded by rage, you went around Gensokyo to spread the dread that cursed your heart. The last one to fall to you was me. I tried to make you see, I tried to force you to open your eyes, and in doing so, forced you to attack and humiliate me the way you did."

"There is **_no_** excuse for what I did to you, Keine! I should have let Mokou melt me to my death!" exclaims the ashamed boy as his eyes water up.

Keine places a gentle finger on his lips, then says "no, Ail. You can't die. You have to learn from all of these mistakes. Learn the lesson, learn to let go of the shame, the guilt, and all that pain. Only then will you be free."

The room flashes once, and now Reimu, Rika, Keine, Mokou, and Luna stand before him, all smiling sweetly, then the black haired girl walks closer to him, sighs, then says "this is against the rules, but somehow, we all feel we must help you. Next time you wake up, the world and your memories will be reset, though that much you already know."

Mokou steps closer, and sternly says "you will not succeed this next time, or the next after that, but at least your subconscious will begin to open."

Rika steps closer, her wings grow as she stretches them, then sweetly says "the next time you wake, you will go to Eientei. There, you will learn a little more about this world's you. That way, you'll have a better idea of how to handle things."

Luna steps closer, scowling at the bow, and says "like Mokou said, you will fail this scenario. NOBODY will believe a single word of truth you may speak, but we guarantee, it will help you greatly on your way, even after the reset."

Keine steps over, the dagger in her chest disappears, and with that serene smile, she says "you must be strong, Ail. We all want you to break away from that darkness that held you for so long, but to do so, you must burn away all that karma that darkness caused you. We know you can do it, or we wouldn't even bother helping you."

Ail looks around at the girls, gulps to moisten his tight throat, then asks "out of curiosity, all of this wouldn't happen to be caused by that second personality of mine, right? The one created by the red spirit?"

The girls disappear, leaving Reimu there, smiling sweetly at the boy.

She sighs as she begins to disappear, and says "partly; for you allowed that thing to take hold of you, and ruined your own personality by accepting its hatred. Not only that, but by also accepting Sanae was right about you, that you needed that _un_needed change in you to be a stronger 'man', you stained the wise and light soul that was the real you. We don't blame you for it, though, because you did it out of your love for her."

Her body becomes invisible, yet she manages to whisper "it is time you fixed that. Clean your soul. Remember that 'pain is weakness leaving the body'."

Ail wants to call her back, to ask a little bit more, but he suddenly feels weak, his eyes close on their own, and all he can hear is a very soft and soothing breeze gracing his ears as he falls on his back.

* * *

Meanwhile, at a bar somewhere in Gensokyo, Yukari and Shikieiki are having a casual discussion, while the shinigami drinks her beer, playing the fool and making it seem as though she's not paying attention to them.

Komachi Onozuka has pinkish-red hair she ties into twin ponytails, red eyes, wears a blue and white dress that covers her down to her knees, a thick belt with a coin on the center, and resting on her shoulder is her scythe with the wispy tip.

She notices when the blonde and her boss both share a sudden look of concern, and finally shows actual interest when both take out their odd plastic items with a button.

The Yama sighs when she notices the contraption is glowing red, and says "he failed already. Unbelievable."

"Fu-fu-fu~. That poor boy. As hilarious as his failure is, he got quite the nasty shock," says the blonde while looking into the semi-transparent white plastic, as if there was something there telling her exactly what happened.

Eiki shakes her head, then says "don't act like you don't care. Look, he almost broke while in there. We'll have to modify his memories a bit and make him a little more receptive of that world, or he'll never pull through."

Yukari's eyes turn gold as she looks at her pyramid, and says "let him have his bracelet back as well, though make sure it's not fully powered up. Not having it actually crashed his psyche."

Komachi alternate stares between the two girls, and asks "so, Ail blundered already? What did he do, get caved by the teacher, or maimed by the mansion's chief maid."

Her burst of laugher is brought to a very awkward and abrupt stop when she gets two dark and deadly glares from a pair of glowing blue, and purple eyes that appear to alternate to yellow.

She sighs as she quiets down, then looks away and says "oy~ waiter; another beer please!"

The two women turn their faces back to their little machines, then Shikieiki presses the button and says "done deal. This time, he'll be... oh, what now!?"

Both plastic machines' lights turns orange, signaling there's been an error, and after a long sigh, Yukari says "great. This reset is going to take a few days. What do we do until then?"

The Yama sits up straight, dusts her shirt, then says "we wait. You go back to your life; I'll get back to work. Simple as that."

The blonde shrugs, then takes the beer from Komachi's hands before her lips touch the glass, then takes a swig from it while saying "alright then. I'll have to teach Ran how to use this thing though. It's almost winter~"

They ignore the shinigami's complaints for her stolen beer mug, Eiki mostly interested in how that gap youkai managed to dink and speak so clearly at the same time.

Yukari grins and rubs Shiki's head like one would a child, knocking out her hat and annoying her quite a bit, then says "I just separated the speech and liquid barriers for a bit. Isn't it a fun little ability?"

The Yama just sits with her elbows on the table, staring at the gap youkai while wondering if she did the right thing by accepting her assistance with Ail's matter.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Scarlet Devil Mansion's basement, Flandre, a blonde vampire that ties her blonde hair into a long left-side ponytail, has red vampiric eyes, wears an undersized red and white dress that covers just above her thighs, and has a pair of black iron rods with colorful crystals hanging from said rods as wings, roars furiously while shooting a blue orb to the right of her room's open door.

She clicks her tongue after her bullet explodes, and says "you little runt! That's the last time you'll touch me!"

Her skirt has been scratched to shreds at the back, exposing her scratched bloomers, which reveal her white panties underneath.

She glances around furiously, then growls and exclaims "Sakuya, don't let that little shit escape, you understand!"

"MWWWEEEERRRRROOOOOWWWWWW!"

A three-tailed black cat with brown stripes on the belly, and glowing yellow eyes, screeches as it jumps from the floor and painfully sticks its claws on Flandre's chest, hisses in front of the girl's face, then roars again as it suddenly rushes to her face and starts scratching her all over the head.

The girl screams at the top of her lungs while trying to catch the cat with her hands, though fails miserably.

Sakuya Izayoi, a woman with blue eyes, silver hair she adorns with a maid's headdress and makes to braids on both sides, and dresses herself in a blue maid's uniform, rushes over to the little vampire and swings her knife with deadly accuracy near her ear, forcing the evil nekomata off the blonde's furious face.

Flandre roars furiously and screeches "FORBIDDEN BARRAGE, CATADIOPTRIC!"

In her blind rage, her spell cards almost explodes on her very hand as her bullets fire wildly around the room and bounce around the walls.

The chief maid screams and throws herself on the floor for cover, while the three-tailed nekomata hisses and jumps on a wall, avoiding one bullet, bounces off said wall, avoiding another, lands on a large portrait of Remilia; another vampire with short wavy light-blue hair, red vampiric eyes, who wears a pink mob cap with a matching pink dress she adorns with red ribbons, and has two black bat wings the same length of her body; and ducks to avoid yet another bouncing bullet.

The vampire and the maid glare at the cat on top of that portrait, then Sakuya asks "Miss Flandre, what happened to your cap?"

The little blonde stomps the ground several times, then points at the cat wile shouting "that stupid, STUPID-head of a blasted cat from _HELL_ ate it!"

The cat grins and expands its eyes vilely while hissing a laugh, then burps out a white piece of cloth with part of a red ribbon.

Flandre roars to the air, grabs Sakuya by the chest, ignoring the maid's painful yelp, then tosses the woman straight at the cat.

The skillful woman, though pained and screaming, puts her hands in front of herself and springs off the wall where the cat was before it jumped.

She avoids a massive red bullet that was flying after her, while the evil black cat kicks himself from the ceiling; also avoiding the explosive bullet; uses the momentum of the massive explosion from that overpowered bullet, and lands right on top of Flandre's head.

The girl starts running around in circles while screaming and crying for help, then the smiling cat reveals its claws, raises its left paw, then works on the screaming girl's head, sounding like a buzz saw as it rapidly scratches her skull.

Knives fly to the cat, forcing him off the little crying vampire, and while looking at Sakuya, it flicks its three tails upward, then runs away, hiding in the darkness.

"Uuuu, that damned cat," angrily growls Sakuya.

Flandre sobs after letting herself drop on her butt, and then cries "I hate it! Why is it picking on me? I can't ever make it kyuu! WHY CAN'T I BREAK IT!?"

The chief maid sighs sympathetically, rubs the girl's head, seeing as it is healed from the scratches already, then says "come on young mistress. Let's get you a bath ready so you can freshen up a bit."

The pouting blonde nods twice, gets on her feet with Sakuya's help, then sobs and cries "I'll get that ***** cat someday. Just you wait!"

The maid karate-chops the girl's head, making her yelp in pain, then scolds "ara~, ladies don't used that kind of language!"

The vampire just whines and moans, but being so tired, she just sighs and nods, instead of punishing that offending human.

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Kyo, Budou, Minako, Luna, and the black three-tailed cat were created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami was created by Snapshot 2010

MAY 27, 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Hope you liked that last bit with Flandre and the black cat. Made it to soften the feel of the chapter a little bit, for I want this to have a bit of a balance, and not make it a completely dark fic.**

**Until next time!**

Yukari: I saw what you did there, Willie. You edited the chapter.

Me: So?

Yukari: Oh, I'm just surprised of seeing you do something other than playing videogames.

Me: You know, you're quite sexy. *Gapped*


	2. Chapter 2

**NOTES:** This is where it starts getting confusing during scene transitions. Try and keep up, for it is ALL part of the fun of this fanfiction. I still tried my best to make it as least confusing as possible, though reluctantly.

Also note that in order to understand certain parts of this chapter (concerning Rika and the resort visit), please read "Balance in the Dark", a spin-off concerning Rika's growth into a whole.

Legend: [_i_] = a sudden thought/dialogue between the main dialogue.

Dec 17 2012 - Rewrote many parts of this chapter. More than on the first chapter. I'll be checking the rest of the chapters before continuing the story. Sorry.

* * *

"Honey~ ...Wake up sleepy head~"

Ail moans as he stirs about, a sweet voice echoing in his dreams and slowly bringing him back to reality.

"Ail, sweetheart. ...If you don't wake up *giggle* I'm going to have to kiss you~ ...On second thought, don't wake up."

"My Lady Reimu, the people are watching," worriedly whispers Rika, who seems to be a little farther away to the left.

Reimu just giggles again, and playfully says "let them watch and be jealous."

The maid just moans with fright, and seems to move away while muttering "if you think it's ok, My Lady."

Ail's consciousness is right between awake and asleep, consciously knows Reimu is kneeling beside him, and yet, when her warm lips touch his own, he subconsciously thinks of Sanae instead.

The thought costs him, and a painful tingle curses his head, yet somehow he gently wakes up to a breezy summer noon, under the tree next to the Dragon God statue at the village's center, with the kneeling Reimu looking down on him with a smile that would melt a heart of cold stone.

Unable to help it, he smiles back at her as he slowly pushes himself up, and stutters "R-Reimu... [_my darling_] G-good afternoon."

He twitches and glances around in confusion as he wonders where that thought came from so suddenly, then starts combing his hair with his hands in an effort to calm himself down, and feels something moving around his right wrist.

The black-haired girl sighs irritably, places her hands on her hips, pouts cutely, and asks "sweetie, are you still asleep?"

The boy wonders if he should say something or not while pulling his right sleeve, but then sees his golden bracelet on himself, though it's lacking any kind of adornments or symbols other than the green oval jewel on its top, and can't help but feel surprised for some reason.

He switches his eyes between the bracelet and Reimu, ends looking at the girl, and asks "I have a bracelet?"

Rika can't help but chortle and break into a fit of laughter after that unexpected and sudden question that has absolutely nothing to do with anything, but quickly composes herself and apologizes repeatedly before pointing to her left and saying "um, I'll be over there if you need me."

As the winged girl distances herself from the couple, Reimu looks at her man and says "wow, that's some nap you were taking there, honey," leans closer with a naughty look on her face, and teasingly asks "dreaming about me, perhaps?"

Somehow, Ail finds the idea both attractive and taboo, places his left hand on her shoulder and takes notice of his wedding ring, stares at her right into her eyes, and asks "why do I have a golden wedding ring on my hand? [_Want to make that dream a reality, my love?_]"

Again he twitches, wondering where that thought came from, then he looks at the girl's confused and slightly hurt expression, then he hears his own voice inside his mind shout "_she's your wife now! Don't upset her!_"

The boy quickly smiles at her, chuckles while rubbing the back of his head, acting as sheepish as possible, then says "ah, s-sorry honey! I guess I'm still asleep, it seems. Err, sorry about that."

Reimu's face becomes bright and loving in an instant, and is jumping to hug the boy by the neck with great force while exclaiming "kyaah~! It's alright, I forgive you!"

She rubs her face against his until she's rubbing noses with him, then playfully says "but don't do it again, or I'll have to punish you!"

The couple look into each other's eyes and giggle happily, while the smiling Rika walks over to them and says "alright, alright, that's quite enough. Remember Missis Reimu, we have to clean the house today, and it's already quite late."

"Ah, that's right. We better hurry then," says the black-haired girl as she gets on her feet.

She offers her hand to the boy and smiles sweetly, then says "come on, my love. You can't stay napping like that all day. We might need your help around the house today."

He smiles back as he accepts her hand, chuckles with surprise when she easily lifts him up with one hand, then looks around and takes notice of all the hateful glares aimed at him from all the villagers in the area.

He suddenly chokes and twitches violently, and his own voice in his head exclaims "_there's no time for this, you fool! You have to go to Eientei! You NEED to go, now!_"

He's brought back to reality when Reimu grabs his hand and drags him with her while irritably saying "honey, you're acting really _weird_. Stop it! Now come on, let's go!"

"W-wai-wait! Reimu, there's-"

Regardless of his protests, she forcefully drags him down the dirt road that's right in front of Keine's empty school.

Something on the front yard of the school gets Ail's attention, and while looking at the seemingly empty yard, he asks "um, h-hey, Reimu, Rika, do... you guys see that?"

He points to the school, even though nobody is currently paying attention to him, as that yard slowly fills with a thick grey mist, and a figure starts to grow from the ground, taking a very familiar shape.

Keine now stands in the middle of that yard, wearing a black dress, with her hands hanging limp under her slightly slouched body, and staring at the boy with a malicious smile and glowing blood-red eyes that shine through her hair, she sinisterly whispers "you failure."

His face turns ghostly pale, his mouths dries up, his eyes lose focus as they become full of innocent fright, and painful jolts of adrenaline surge through his limbs.

Ail breaks free from Reimu's grip and falls on his butt on the ground, then proceeds to push himself away from the school with his feet while hyperventilating and whimpering with fright.

He wants to call for help, but quickly realizes Reimu and Rika, as well as the glaring villagers are gone, and left in their stead are faceless ghosts of either black or white in color walking around as if though going on with their lives.

The boy tries to talk, but his throat squeezes itself tight and chokes him, threatening to suffocate him, however it all stops suddenly, he gasps for air, looks up and blinks once, and now that ghostly-pale, black-dressed Keine stands in front of him with a murderous look in her glowing eyes.

She chuckles softly, a bit of blood trickles down her pale lips that happen to be drawing a crescent smile on that ghostly face, her eyeballs turn pitch black; save for the single glowing red dotted pupils; and her small sharp fangs grow long.

Before Ail can react, she grabs him by the collar of his shirt, lifts him above herself with ease, and with a voice that echoes in his mind, she furiously says "go to Eientei. Go to Eientei NOW! NOW AIL! LEARN!"

He finds himself being dragged by Reimu again, notices how both her and Rika appear to have not noticed a thing, but not wanting to tempt fate again, he shouts "I need to go to Eientei!"

The black-haired girl jumps, making her kimono lift itself a bit, then turns around to look at the dense boy, gasps, and exclaims "Ail, my love, you look so pale! What's wrong?"

Ail grabs her hand as gently as possible and says "it's nothing serious. I just need to go. Reimu [_my love_], my love, please let me go!"

Rika raises a suspicious eyebrow, holds her family sword by the hilt, and with a suspicious tone, she says "hmm~. You've been acting very strange, Anilan. I swear, if you are up to your mischief-making again, I am going to-"

Reimu raises her arm to stop the winged girl's aggressive advance at her husband, looks at her and shakes her head slowly, then says "Rika, no."

She looks back at the boy and says "this is different. My darling, I don't understand why, but there's some sort of urgency about all of this, as if it is something of undoubted importance."

Ail gulps and nods, then says "it's something at the back of my head [_darling_] d-darling. Like there's something I must do there!"

The black haired girl lifts her hand chest-high and says "just go. If it's that important, then please go with haste. It must be the will of the gods, there's no other explanation."

The trio ignores the glaring villagers as they all look upon each other, and just by staring into each others' eyes they all come to some sort of unspoken understanding.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the west side of the Human Village, Kaizo Yumeda, who prefers to be called Kyo, looks curiously out the window in front of the house from his living room, then sighs with boredom.

He has short, spiky black hair, dark brown eyes that give the impression to be scowling, and wears a pink muscle shirt under a long-sleeved, unbuttoned black jacket, and long black pants.

He walks over to the door of his house with that bored expression, opens it up, letting in the wintery winds and some dead brown leaves, then asks "back from the resort, I see. So, did she do it?"

Keine stands just outside, looking quite fresh in the wintery late noon outdoors, nods elegantly, and says "oh yes. Rika is now a very lovely and radiant young woman with soft... very, _very_ soft feathers I just want to touch and-"

She realizes just in time how her lustful self is presenting herself in front of the boy, so she quickly composes herself, forgets about Rika's soft feathers, and casually says "um, yes, she did it. Happened faster than you said. Ten minutes against your two hours. You owe me twenty-thousand."

The tanned-skinned muscle boy grumbles curses under his breath as he hands the money to the history teacher, and as she pockets it on her right breast, he asks "won't Rika be kinda pissed if she finds out we're betting on her? She _was_ being kind of private about the whole thing."

Keine winks as she points at the boy, as if reprimanding him, and says "only if some stupid blabbermouth happens to let his tongue slip."

The two stare daggers at each other for a while, then suddenly start to laugh like a couple of drunk friends at a bar.

A third voice joins their fit of laughter, and slowly, but surely, they stop their laugh to stare at the laughing Medicine and Su-San, a doll that looks just like her master, only her shirt is red, while her skirt is dark red.

The little blonde's fake laughter slowly stops so that she and her doll may stare vilely at the betting friends, and grins while saying "so~ betting behind Rika's back, huh? How disgusting the two of you are."

She twirls in place like some cute little girl would, stops with a playful bow that somehow makes the back of her skirt rise just slightly and quite elegantly, then looks at the two friends with an evil grin, making them both gulp with worry.

"I want a hundred thousand by the end of the week, or I'm making sure that dear sweet angel maid knows of your dastardly deeds."

The bright confidence in the youkai's eyes quickly dissolves when going against the two evil grinning faces of the human and the half youkai.

She gulps as she takes several steps away from the terrifying buddies, then Keine sinisterly suggests "how about this proposition instead?"

Kyo punches his left hand repeatedly while suggesting "we beat you up, lock you in a trunk, bury you in the backyard, and never speak of the poisonous doll youkai again."

"Ooh, I was going to suggest we seal her mouth in Makai, but your idea sounds _much_ better," chirps the teacher with a most devious smile.

They both walk toward the little girl, she takes a step back, they keep moving forward, chuckling wickedly as they do, the little doll's eyes becomes two white ovals with tears flowing from them, then she runs into the living room, crying like a little child.

"WAAAAAHHHH~ LUNA! LUNA~ help meeeee! Wwwa-ha-haaaa~ Kyo wants to bury me in the backyard!"

Kyo and Keine completely ignore the little blonde's cries for help, and continue to chuckle sinisterly and looking at her with their own sinister faces while chasing her all around the couch and guest table.

Two powerful whacks vibrate strongly all over the house, threatening to knock down many ornaments with the vibrations, and now both muscled boy and teacher curl down on the floor and groan while holding their heads tightly as steaming bumps sizzle on their crowns.

Luna stands tall on top of the table, with the crying Medicine snuggling her face between that ample chest of hers, and angrily says "stop picking on Medi so much, Kyo! Next time I'm using my sword's hilt," then blows on her steaming fist.

She looks at the history teacher with a very disappointed face, and says "and I can't believe that you, Keine Kamishirasawa, of all people, would stoop as low as to pick on this child!"

The blue dressed woman chuckles weakly as she gets up, still rubbing her head, and says "oh, come on. It was just a little teasing. Besides, she's a youkai. A... err, young youkai."

"My point exactly," angrily retorts Luna, now patting the blonde on the head in a motherly manner.

She hops off the table and lands next to Kyo, forcing the boy to stand up straight because of the impact on the floor, and asks "so I take it you got good news about Rika?"

"Yes," chirps Keine quite happily as she arranges her hat over her bump. "She and Reimu are safely back at the shrine-"

"And you collected your bet money from Kyo, I'm sure," finishes Luna with a vicious grin on her face so vile, it makes both teacher and boy twitch as though stung by a knife's tip.

The girl's silver eyes glow brightly in the dim lit room as her sinister smiles matches her sinister face, and then she sinisterly whispers "oh yes, I know about that, and I am sure you'll be sure to keep me and Medicine happy, or else one of us will accidentally blab to that sweet maid of Reimu's."

Both Kyo and Keine slump and smile weakly in defeat, and after a long sigh, both sadly say "**fine. You win.**"

Luna smiles sweetly and continues petting Medicine's head, while said doll youkai trembles.

Unknown to the sinister and motherly girl, Medicine is currently hiding her terrified face between her breasts while thinking "_Luna is scary. She's **too** scary. I must **never** get on her bad side!_"

* * *

Meanwhile, the warm summery afternoon makes the walk at the Bamboo Forest of the Lost as little uncomfortable for Ail. However uncomfortable it may be though, a sweaty neck is not enough to keep him from trying to dig inside his own mind.

"Ok, so Reimu and I are married. [_No kiddin'?_] Why do I think it's such a big deal? [_What about that other girl?_] I mean, I feel there was someone else, but whenever I try to think about her... AUGH!"

He tries thinking of the blurry image in green, white and blue, and his head fills with strong jolts of tingling pain that quickly force him to think of something menial, like a bird flying in the sky, or a rabbit bouncing on the snow, and with those thoughts filling his head, the pain slowly subsides.

The boy finds himself holding his head with one hand, while supporting his kneeled self with the other so as not to fall on the ground, and after a groan, he looks up and gets back on his feet.

As if on automatic, his thoughts turn to Rika, and he questions "Rika... my little sister. Why do you look at me like that? [_You caught her off guard._] Like if I was some kind of villain for you to defeat, before it's too late."

His head throbs a bit, and then images of himself sealing a darker-skinned version of Rika by the Misty Lake, regardless of the girl begging to be released, curse his mind with painful images.

He gulps after realizing he's on his knees again, quickly stands, and keeps walking while sadly saying "whatever was it that I did to you, it seems you can't forgive me. [_Of course not, you villain!_] But why would I even do such a thing?"

"Aww, poor guy," says a girl walking besides Ail, who has short blonde hair, yellow eyes, and dresses in a blue maid's outfit. "Well, it's her loss. I think you're kinda' cute, so I can be your new little sister if you want."

"I'm hurt, sis," says another blonde to the right of the maid, this one with slightly longer hair with a red ribbon on her head, wearing a long-sleeved pink and white dress with a brown vest on top and sporting a pair of wings on her back. "I thought you were _my_ little sister already."

The maid girl smiles, holds her own cheek with her hand while she flaps her other hand in the air says "oh, don't feel bad. I can still be your little sister too."

Ail stops to stare at the maid girl and her sister in surprise, and whispers "Miss Mugetsu?", then looks at the winged girl, and adds "Miss Gengetsu. Err... th-those _are_ your names, right?"

The girls look at each other, turn their saddened faces at the boy, then the winged girl says "now I'm really hurt. To think you forgot our names already."

The maid pouts and boos at the boy, then says "and here we finally find you to thank you for releasing us too. I'm sad."

The boy sighs, bows and apologizes, then says "I'm really sorry, I'm just so confused. It feels like I'm in some kind of nightmare right now and I can't wake up. [_You villain! You MONSTER!_] I can't remember things I should know, there are facts that seem to be... twisted. And hey, wasn't there another girl with you?"

Mugetsu stares casually at the boy, smiles, then says "oh, Kana's around here somewhere. As for your little predicament, well that's kinda obvious. You're insi-"

A massive ripple of pure, invisible energy, rushes through the area, muting the two blondes, while making Ail feel sick and disoriented, and right after it stops, Mugetsu and Gengetsu are gone, as if they were never there in the first place.

Ail looks around the area as though completely disoriented, calls "Mugetsu? Gengetsu," scratches the side of his head, and wonders "did I just dream those girls up?"

He stops looking when Reisen Udongein Inaba appears before him, panting as if exhausted while holding on to a bamboo shoot to avoid falling on the ground, and looking at him with tired and lustful eyes.

She has long light-purple hair that reaches her lower back, red eyes, crumpled rabbit ears with buttons on the bottom, and wears a white button shirt with a red tie around the neck, though it's currently lose and crumpled, and a blue skirt that fails to hide her fluffy white tail.

She lifts her weak eyes to meet with Ail's, smiles weakly, though looks insane when she does, blows a kiss, and whispers "I'm waiting for you, Ail. Remember your promise."

The boy gasps, shakes his head while rubbing his eyes, then opens them again to see that he is all alone in the middle of the Bamboo Forest again.

His brain suddenly registers what Reisen had just said to him, and he gasps in surprise before kicking off to a run, and then says to himself "what the heck was that? Reisen? Is she alright? I promised something to heAAAAHHH!"

The sound of crumbling soil accompanies the dense boy as he screams while falling down a dark hole, then after a few seconds, his body thudding on the bottom is quickly accompanied by thumping rocks and his groans of pain.

It takes him a whole minute to get on his feet, fly out of the hole, and crash on the ground to the right of the hole with spinning eyes and a very sore butt.

As he rubs his pained posterior, he groans pathetically, then moans "auuu~! Gods damn it, Tewi."

Meanwhile, at Mayohiga, Yukari is in her room, and stares at her triangle-like item as its light turns from purple to green after she rubs one of its edges.

She glares at the item with intensity, as if looking within it, then says to herself "I better inform the Yama about thi-*ywaaa-aaaaaan*"

Her head falls on the pillow under her chin, she pulls her covers over herself, tucks the pyramid around her belly, then contently sighs "ahh, I'll tell her after I wake up. Mmm~ it's so warm."

* * *

Meanwhile, on that cold and wintery late noon at Eientei, Reisen, who is wearing her blackish-grey suit-like shirt and a pink skirt, sets the last of the bamboo pieces that are to be used for the fire in the winter on the neat pile in front of herself.

She expels her held breath and swipes the sweat off her forehead while looking at the ten piles of fire fuel she's set on the corner of the yard next to the mansion, and though feeling exhausted, she starts speaking to herself.

"Ugh, so much work. My whole body is aching. And that Tewi is so lazy! She didn't even bother showing her face around me while I did **_all_** the work. She was probably playing around the forest all day-YYYYYYAAAAA!"

Upon taking a single step away from that last pile of cut bamboo, the poor Moon Rabbit falls victim to the teamwork of gravity and one of Tewi's holes.

The poor girl groans from within, while a little girl with fluffy white rabbit ears, dark-red eyes, shoulder-length black hair, who's wearing a frilly pink nightgown and socks, walks over the edge of the hole with a smug smile, and says "nice work Reisen. You really showed me how to do a job well done."

Tewi Inaba bends down to look down that hole, allowing her carrot necklace to dangle in front of her chest with the intent of taunting some more, then Reisen's hand breaks through the darkness of the hole, grabs on to the necklace, and regardless of the Earth Rabbit's complaints, she pulls with all her might and they both fall within into the hole.

Silence reigns after the double groans from within that hole, then Eirin Yagokoro walks by with her arms crossed under her chest, making some noise with her every step, and coldly says "well done Udonge. Although you did take a little longer than I had anticipated, I'll forgive you."

She has very long silver hair she braids and ties at the bottom nearing her calves, dark grey eyes, and wears a blue nurse's cap with constellations on it, and a blue and red dress with the blue and red parts alternating sides on the top and bottom parts, which are also adorned with constellations, and symbols as the bottom of the skirt similar to those on Marisa's Hakkero.

Reisen and Tewi crawl out of that hole, groaning and moaning as they pull themselves out of the trap, then the out-of-breath Moon Rabbit says "I am sorry Master, but there was no way I could do this any faster on my own."

"I don't want to hear excuses Udonge, I want to see results," reprimands the Lunarian Pharmacist. "Another failure like this and I'll have to punish you."

The lilac haired girl just groans and lets her head fall flat on the ground, then she screams when Tewi suddenly sit-bombs on her back.

"That's for dragging me into that hole," furiously exclaims the black haired girl.

Reisen twists her body just to grab her ally by the ears, pulls with what little strength she has left, and growls "I'm getting sick of your pranks! If I wasn't so tired, I would teach you a lesson right now!"

Tewi is about to launch a punch straight at the ally's face, when they both suddenly turn their heads toward the mansion, and all three girls exclaim "**ah, Princess!**", look at each other, then say "**stop doing that!**", and then Eirin smiles in a very sweet and deadly manner, causing the two rabbits to bite their own lips with fright.

Kaguya Houraisan has beautiful long, straight black hair, dark brown eyes, and wears a long-sleeved pink shirt riddled with white bows, and a dark burgundy skirt adorned with yellow bamboo and flower shapes.

She smiles at her pets and her attendant, and asks "Inaba, Inaba, Eirin, I'm bored. Can any of you find something for me to do?"

The nurse looks at the long-haired rabbit, and then says "you heard the princess. Please find some form of amusement for the princess."

"Please do so in ten seconds," adds the Lunarian Princess with a chirp.

Before Reisen can even think of some form of reply, from the mansion's gate, a familiar girl calls "well, it seems the shut-in ex-princess doesn't know how to pass the time by herself. Perhaps I can teach her how to play cards or sumthin."

Kaguya's smile becomes twisted with disgust and evil as she slowly turns around, and in a mocking sweet voice says "that voice that screams 'poverty' with every syllable spewed from its filthy mouth that lacks proper hygiene. Mokou, how unpleasant to see-EEEEEHHHHHHH?"

Mokou Fujiwara stands next to the gate with an old woman and her grandson to her side, and six or more other men with posters declaring their love for the immortal, adorned with glittery shapes and letter.

To add insult to injury, the usually unkempt, dirty, and unevenly tanned girl is shining with beauty, is tanned perfectly even, is dressed in neat and clean clothes that cling to her curves, and even her eyelashes seem to shine with feminine beauty.

"Mo-Mo-Mo... MOKOU? Wait, is that really you?" exclaims Kaguya before looking at Eirin and asking "is that her?"

The fire girl smiles and shrugs so that everyone sees her doing it, then says "what can I say? Since that tengu leaked my swimsuit photos from the resort, I earned myself a little fan club. I was against it at first, but it's kinda grown on me."

"MOKOU, WE LOVE YOU," shouts one of the young men at the back, causing said girl to turn around and wave.

In mere seconds, Kaguya is standing in front of her bitter enemy, while a thick cloud of dirt and dust slowly dissipates behind her, and pointing at the light-lilac haired girl, she smiles disturbingly while exclaiming "you're LYING! You hate attention, you HATE being idolized by men, and you most certainly HATE being seen in anything other than your dirty clothes while in _public_!"

The bamboo hermit smiles back rather casually, and says "hey now, I'm not here to fight. There's a sick woman here who needs medical attention. Not to mention the six adoring mortals behind me."

Eirin, Tewi and Reisen are already leading the boy and his mother to the clinic, while Kaguya stomps her foot on the ground, angrily saying "you're! just! pissing! me! OFF! But it won't wor-err... **DAMMIT!** You're hot!"

Mokou has lifted the Kakashi Spirit Newspaper article of herself between her face and her immortal rival's, and is proudly displaying herself in her bikini, and her cute swimsuit, and although the pictures are in black and white, it is clear that lone-wolf girl has been hiding her real curvy beauty from the world for quite a long time.

"Thank you very much, Kaguya," proudly replies Mokou while pulling the paper article away.

Mokou looks around as casually as if she owned the place, totally ignoring the Lunarian Princess' hateful glares and sparking eyes, then sighs and says "well, I guess it's time I left after a job well done."

She turns around and walks away, followed by her fan club, which now also includes a few youkai rabbits, and says "kill you later Kaguya. Oh, and nice wrinkles there, _princess_."

Kaguya grinds her teeth as her rival and her admirers laugh at the vile joke against her, yet she somehow manages to stop herself from attacking the girl or the club, and just rushes to clinic.

She bursts through the front door, walks to the back, kicks the next door open, then furiously demands "EIRIN! I want to go to that resort, **_NOW!_**"

The Lunarian Pharmacist peeks her head from the second door on the hallway of patient rooms, looks at the princess, then says "you cannot," then closes the door again.

Kaguya is left with white spheres for eyes in the middle of that hallway, letting her arms swing as she slumps sadly, then screams out loud "WHAT'S THE MEANING OF THAT ANSWER!? WE ARE GOING THERE, AND THAT! IS! **_FINAL_**!"

Her yelling causes small tremor that sends the rabbits running and cheering all over the mansion grounds in a fright-frenzy.

* * *

The outside of Eientei is gloomy, lonely, almost depressing, and quite uninvitingly dark on that late summer's day noon. These are the first things Ail notices upon his arrival.

He stands outside the gates and gazes at the cold and empty grounds of the eternal mansion, and somehow feels an overwhelmingly depressing sadness coming from within that once lively home, and says "it's so sad here. Doesn't even feel like Eientei."

Meanwhile, inside the mansion, Reisen, who is in her summer outfit, looking unhealthily skinny, walks nervously down the dark corridors of the mansion with a tray that's holding her master's dinner.

As she walks forward, her body jitters as if she were frightened. Her eyes look empty and tired, she smiles blankly, her skin looks so pale it is as if she were undead, and her hair has lost all its sheen.

She seems to be stumbling onwards with the intent of serving her Master Eirin, but she trips on herself and falls on her sides, yet her empty smile remains the same.

Nothing spills, yet the Moon rabbit appears to not even notice she has fallen, seeing as she continues moving her legs and keeps holding her hands out as if she were still walking and carrying the tray.

Tewi and a couple of youkai rabbits stand in front of Reisen, and one of the subordinate rabbits is holding the tray for Eirin, while the rabbit leader looks down at her allied Moon Rabbit with a pained look.

"Reisen," she sighs as she gently sits the fallen girl straight, helping her realize she's not on her feet as she thought she was.

Udonge looks around with a disoriented look, stares at her empty hands, tears start to roll down her eyes, yet she calmly asks "what happened to Master's food? Did I deliver it? I didn't fall again, did I?"

The youkai rabbit sighs as she caresses her allied rabbit's face with her hand, then twists her body around and commands "take that tray to Eirin, and don't you dare eat a single bite. Not even a crumb!"

The two lesser rabbits bow, then rush further into the corridor, while Tewi turns around to face the Moon Rabbit's empty smiling face, sighs again, and says "you have to snap out of this. If you keep this up, the masters will certainly-"

She quickly turns around when she feels one of the two rabbits standing behind her, and before she asks, the rabbit youkai nervously says "she requests for her, Tewi-sama!"

The pink-clad rabbit girl groans in her frustration, and hiding her pain with a furious face, she helps Reisen up on her feet; despite their size differences; and says "come Reisen! Eirin wants to see you."

The lilac haired girl just smiles and looks forward as she chuckles softly, then says "Master is so nice, but her punishments hurt. Heh-heh, I don't want to get punished. I am good."

The black haired rabbit can only sigh to prevent herself from crying, and guides the disoriented girl by the hand.

The door to Eirin's room is just a few steps ahead, and it remains open, giving Tewi a very bad feeling, yet regardless of how nervous she feels she has no choice but to keep leading Reisen there.

Inside the room, Eirin and Kaguya sit around a small rectangular table, where the tray with the food remains untouched.

The Lunarians stare at the alien rabbit for some time, Kaguya sighs sadly, and then Eirin says "there is no choice. She's become a threat."

"What? Just like that!? Please, give her another chance! I got her to walk all the way here on her own! She fell just outside; please, you have to believe me!"

Despites Tewi's argument, it appears the pharmacist's decision is final, and knowing this, the Earth Rabbit breaks down to cry on her knees, while her lunar ally simply stares around the room, as if seeing the nice and cozy surroundings for the first time.

The silver haired woman looks down to the floor with a pained look in her eyes and says "I'm sorry, but she's become a real threat. Ever since the boy broke her, her mind has been degrading. She could expose us all without even realizing it, and then we are all as good as gone."

Kaguya walks over to the youkai rabbit and easily picks her up, holding her against her chest while softly saying "we tried Inaba; we all did. But you saw her outside. She didn't even realize she had fallen. It's over."

Tewi's tears suddenly dry up, and hides a feral look of pure rage against the princess' chest, while angrily growling "that Ail! Let's kill him and fix this problem. Let's save Udonge!"

There is a deafening bang on the table, then Eirin furiously shouts "WE'VE BEEN THOUGH THIS! IT WILL ONLY WORK IF **_SHE_** KILLS HIM," then she suddenly grabs the bridge of her nose and closes her eyes while more calmly saying "and given her state of mind, and how clever that damned boy is, the chances of that happening are low."

Even the youkai rabbits in the room seem to start crying as silently as possible, while Reisen herself smiles as she looks at her master with those empty eyes, and casually says "then you better do it now, while I still have some consciousness left, te-heh! I don't really want to, but I have been trouble for you and the Princess, right?"

Eirin will never admit to feeling a sharp sting in her heart after hearing her apprentice say those words so casually, but as strong as she is, she fails to stop a single tear from rolling down her face.

She nods, starts to rummage through her right pocket, and softly says "you're right, Udonge. I guess it really _is_ time..."

Reisen's delicate nose start to twitch, she lifts her head and sniffs softly, rises to her feet as she sniffs a little louder, the life returns to her eyes, her hair becomes a little more bouncy and radiant, and her skin regains a bit of color.

The Moon Rabbit stands on the tip of her right foot while lifting her left leg, a smile escapes her lips, then she mumbles "...him. Is it him? He's here? ...The promise?"

Eirin gasps when realizing what's happening and shouts the command "stop her! Don't let her go outside!"

Tewi and Kaguya act too slowly, and by the time they jump on Reisen, the girl is already out in the corridor, and racing to the exit.

The Lunarian Pharmacist stands up, places her hand on her chest, and her voice echoes all over Eientei as she says "the boy is here! Reisen! Everyone, you have to stop Reisen, **_NOW!_**"

Udonge plows through the waves of youkai rabbits like an automated and unstoppable motor machine, and makes her way outside with some slight effort.

She spots Ail standing with his arms raised over his head while being surrounded by countless youkai rabbits, and runs to him faster than she did while in the corridors.

She jumps on the boy, grips him tight in a hug, and exclaims "you came! You came back for me! You really did! You really did keep your promise!"

The confused boy returns the hug with a light pat on the back, while asking "wha? M-Miss Reisen, what do you mean?"

* * *

Ail gently pats the Moon Rabbit's head when the girl starts to sob, then asks "Reisen, what's the matter? Why are the rabbits aiming at us? [_The damned bastards!_] And what promise are you talking about?"

The girl pulls her head away from the boy, then lunges it straight at his face, locking lips and almost sucking out his life before pulling herself back at the last moment, and giggles almost madly.

Anilan falls on his back after the loss of oxygen affects his head, while Udonge remains sitting on his chest, giggling like a giddy little school girl and sneaking the occasional kiss on his face.

She chuckles mischievously and says "this is how our love story started, my dear Ail! Although, you were on top last time. Teh-heh, we made the pact on a day similar to this one. At first I was a little against it, but when we sealed our love, and the pact was made-"

Her cheeks burn as she closes her eyes and remembers the occasion, then places her hands on her cheeks while cheering stupidly and says "kyah~! I still feel all tingly just thinking about it!"

Ail's eyes spread wide open, his face shine bright with both embarrassment and awkwardness, and all he can reply are a couple of mumbles and incoherent chokes.

Reisen bends down, getting her face closer to his while getting comfortable on him, and whispers "and then you promised me you would come back for me, that you would take me home with you, where I would be treated with the love and respect I deserve. Oh yes you did."

The boy grabs the Moon Rabbit by the shoulders and rolls to the left, getting on top of her.

"Oh my, sweetie, not while everyone is watching," says Reisen with a warm smile and flushed cheeks.

He pulls her up and takes flight just before five arrows hit the ground where they were lying, twirls around with the girl in the air, avoiding another set of arrows and some large blue bullets, pushes the girl away while still holding her hand to let three more arrows pass between them, then pulls her back and holds her against himself, then dives to avoid six red arrows.

After they are both safe, and Reisen moans in bliss after that dance, Ail glowers toward the mansion and furiously shouts "you idiot! You could have hit Reisen!"

The dense boy gazes upon the intense and emotionless eyes of Eirin, a sudden chill hits his spine, and realizing what comes next, he takes flight to the left.

He has no choice but to start shooting the rabbits, and doing so triggers an insane shower of danmaku headed his and Reisen's way, but being almost as quick as Reimu, he manages to move through tight spaces, while making sure the subtle homing arrows keep missing their mark, which happens to be his face.

He shoots his focused orange bullets to the left and takes out five rabbits, thus making an opening for himself and the lilac haired girl, which he gladly flies to.

"**DISPERSE AND REGROUP!**"

The rabbits all break formation and scatter about after Tewi's command, Kaguya intercepts Ail and shoots her colorful orbs straight at him and the rabbit girl, but a quick dive and a spray of white bullets from Anilan saves him and the rabbit girl.

Tewi kicks the dense one's face from the right, taking Reisen from his hands while he falls toward Eirin, at the same time as the rabbits regroup, making large triangle formations all around the sky, so as to prevent Anilan from escaping.

"Master, don't," shouts Udonge from behind him, while the boy's and the Lunarian's eyes meet.

The woman's eyes are filled with insatiable bloodlust specifically aimed at him, while Anilan's are filled with fear and confusion, but she doesn't care about this and raises her bow with an arrow ready for the kill.

Ail sees no other choice than to hoot several focused blasts at the pharmacist to throw her aim off and save himself, and after managing to lift his body in mid-air, he arcs upward and flies to the sky again right in front of Eirin.

Tewi's already feral face becomes monstrous as she growls, and then exclaims "use lethal force! Take him right out of the damned sky!"

All rabbits, including the pink-dressed one herself, shoot in unison along with Kaguya, who seems to be delighted in joining in the boy's demise.

Reisen hits Tewi on the cheek with her elbow, breaking her concentration, but earns herself a hard chop on the neck, and an apology from Tewi as she falls unconscious. "Sorry Udonge, but I rather kill him with my own hands than to watch you die!"

Ail knows those bullets aimed at him aren't your everyday danmaku, and is suddenly reminded of Reimu's stories from when she had to resolve incidents without the use of the spell card system.

He can only see one choice, and that is to land and use his all-around spell card, Brightness, Overwhelming Heart, "_but to do so, I'll have to risk going through those dangerous bullets _[_I'll get killed! I must run away!_]_, and land precisely in the center of the field._"

His thoughts are soon brought to a sudden halt when Kaguya appears to his right and hits the back of his head with a linked-fist punch, at the same time a bright yellow arrow goes right through his stomach.

He falls, though is still conscious, and as he does, he can feel the other bullets burning through his clothes and stinging his skin as he falls straight to the ground below.

"_Huh; not so bad. It hurts, but I'm not dying. _[_Oh shit, I'm going to die! No, I don't want to die!_] _I__ can get back up. Just need to endure a little more!_"

He feels his back smash hard against the ground a little sooner than he thought, and knowing well he doesn't have time to waste, he lifts his aching and disoriented self, and moves left toward a red skull sign, when wanting to move right.

He falls down a pitfall, screaming when he sees the bed of thick blades getting closer to him, then instinctively activates a thick blue barrier under himself.

"I'm safe!", he exclaims after his physical barrier protects him from the spikes below, but upon looking out the hole, he gasps, kicks off his own barrier, activates another in front of himself, and blocks hundreds and hundreds of semi-lethal bullets headed toward him.

Arrows, orbs, petals, shards, even bullets that look like giant bricks; Ail is happy his barrier deflects all those bullets while he exits the hole, and takes off to the now-clear skies.

He calls off his barrier and looks down with anger and fright at the army below, and shouts "WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM? [_YOU ARE ALL IN DEEP SHIT NOW!_] YOU COULD HAVE KILLED ME AND REISEN! AND WHAT'S WITH THOSE DEATH TRAPS!?"

"Tewi," coldly barks Eirin. "I know you want to kill him yourself, but Udonge is the one that has to do it. I will face him, and you will wait until I knock him down. After that, restrain him to the best of your abilities. DID I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?"

The black haired girl's feral face slowly relaxes to the cute one she always wears, and looking down to the ground, she mutters "fine, but if he beats you-"

"You'll do all you can to stop him," commands Eirin as she takes off to the sky to meet with the boy.

The Lunarian and half youkai meet at the darkening sky, where the boy furiously asks "what the hell is your problem; all of you? What did I do? [_I'm going to rip you damned head off!_] And what's with Reisen? She looks like she's dead and still dying!"

The silver haired woman just shoots her deathliest glares at the boy, raises her bow and arrow, and darkly says "don't worry. She's about the get a whole lot better."

* * *

Ail flies to the left to avoid an unfair and sudden barrage of arrows that would put Sakuya's knife count to shame, and even though he did avoid the large bulk of the attack, he's still dealing with dodging the straggling bullets.

As he dodges, he forces Eirin to move when he starts shooting her with his hottest blue and white lasers and homing light-blue petals, while shouting "dammit Eirin, I don't want to fight you!"

The Lunarian starts shooting head-sized black and blue pellets at the boy while staring at him with her coldest and darkest stare, then intensifies the attacks with her arrows without showing the slightest bit of strain.

"_Dammit, this is bad! I've never fought with Eirin before, and now I'm facing her when she's **clearly** pissed off at me! _[_This woman is frightening._] _I better give it my all, but I can't hurt her too bad. ARGH! What IS it with these girls? _[_What a pain in my butt._]"

His thoughts are brought to a halt when he realizes she's activating a spell card, and mutters "this is not good... [_attack, you idiot!_]"

Eirin throws her spell card in front of herself, where it floats while she aims her next arrow directly at it, and shouts "Heaven Spider's Butterfly-Capturing Web!"

She shoots the glowing card with her arrow, and several straight beams fly from it, forming a web of hot beams, capturing Ail inside a narrow space between twenty of the lasers in mere seconds, long before he can activate his own spell card.

Regardless of being trapped, he snarls as he lifts his spell card, and shouts "like hell I'm letting you beat me! Mad Waves, Raging Ocean!"

Countless extra-large blue and white bullets appear all around the boy, and quickly spread out with a magical water wave that seems to appear from the larger bullets themselves, and although Eirin's laser beams remain in place, the round bullets shot by the Lunarian get swept off by the boy's wave.

Though Ail is trapped, it's Eirin who finds herself gasping with surprise and dodging danmaku with outmost care, though never stops shooting orbs and arrows at the boy.

Anilan has to improvise with sudden barriers to block the unfriendly arrows that easily break through his waves and trap him in that narrow spot between beams.

This tense shooting and dodging continues on for fifty-eight seconds, and aside from a few grazes, both battlers are fresh, as only their clothes have gotten any actual damage.

After sixty-three seconds has passed, both spells time out, and almost immediately Ail and Eirin are snarling at each other's faces; the boy blocking her bow and a dagger with a barrier placed next to his arms.

"You're going to pay for what you did to Udonge," snarls Eirin. "Thanks to you, her mind broke to pieces! She has never been able to recover, and all she has had to hang on to her sanity was your empty promise to her!"

He pushes her back by some miracle strength, swings his right arm around as though wielding a sword, though only white arrow-head bullets spray from his hand, and now they are face to face once again, with him stopping her bow from striking his head.

As they push each other back, he says "I swear, I don't remember doing any of that, but Eirin, listen to me. [_Let me take her home with me, or I'll gut you all!_] Let me talk to her! I can help her, I just know it! She just needs to have her mind opened up again, right?"

The Brain of the Moon roars furiously and swings her bow around with the boy as if he was a mere rag adorning her weapon, and furiously shouts "like! I! would! fall! for! ...**THAT!**"

Ail is thrown away with ease and crashes against a concentration of black and blue pellet bullets that the woman had prepared, which explode violently on impact.

He screams in pain as the danmaku breaks through his last-second defenses and burns his skin directly, but he has no time to stop and lick his wounds, as the Lunarian Doctor is rushing toward him.

The dense one easily deflects her knife with a barrier, and growls before raising a spell card and furiously shouting "if you won't listen to words, then take a dose of pain instead! Blast Sign, Expansion that Soothes!"

Right at point-blank, Ail activates his spell card and blasts Eirin on the face with one focused orange bullet after another.

A total of thirty of these bullets blow right on the woman's face, healing the boy as he siphons the stolen energy with each blast, and now the dazed Lunarian finds herself caught in a viciously powerful grip.

Ail's hair stands on its ends as he holds Eirin by the throat, and threatens to break her neck with his raw strength alone.

His eyes glow bright red as he stares hatefully at the woman, then his own voice inside his mind says to him "_do it. Kill the fucking bitch. She deserves it. She made you feel pain, now make. her. pay!_"

"You should have listened, Miss Eirin. Now you're going to pay."

He tightens his grip enough to make the woman gag out loud, winds his arm back, aims his maddened gaze at the sharpest edge he can see on the mansion's roof, then prepares to launch himself forward.

He quickly realizes what he is doing, his eyes return to being gold, he stops moving, softens his grip, then looks straight at Reisen, who is down on the ground and keeps looking back at him with worry, then he asks himself "what am I doing?"

He releases the woman, confusing her to no ends as she nurses her sore neck while backing away, then looks at her, smiles, and says "this is not the real me, you have to believe me. I would never try to hurt anyone deliberately. Especially those I call my friends."

He lifts his hand again and offers it to the Lunarian Doctor, but the rabbits below think he's attacking, and rush to aid their alien ally.

It all happens ridiculously fast, but for Ail and Eirin, it seemed as though time had slowed down to a crawl, and now the confused Lunarian merely watches as the boy is shot and beaten to the ground next to Reisen.

* * *

Ail kneels on the ground, full of bruises, cuts and burns that stain his whole face, his left eye is black and swollen to the point of being closed shut, and just to make sure he's weak enough, Tewi punches his stomach as hard as she can, and shoots a bullet directly on it.

Reisen yelps and covers her head while crouching and looking away after she watches him cough out some blood, then Eirin kneels beside her and hesitantly says "Udonge, don't look away. You _have_ to break free of him, to free your mind and be yourself again."

The silver haired Lunarian looks back at the boy with some pity present in her eyes, then hesitantly continues "you... You have to kill him. Please Reisen, I know this sounds hard, but I promise you, it will all get better when he's gone from your life!"

She hands over the knife she was using to fight the boy earlier, places it on the rabbit's hand and whispers "please, don't make me send you away. Just stab him once and it's done."

Eirin stands, then turns her gaze to the boy again, a bit of pain can be seen in her eyes, but she closes them up and steels herself before turning away and saying to herself "no. He's a monster, Eirin. Look at what he's putting Udonge through."

While the Lunarian walks toward her princess, the Moon Rabbit stares at the knife on her hand, then at the damaged boy being held by her allied rabbits.

Tewi grips Ail's hair, pulls his head up, and sinisterly says "don't you dare try to sweet-talk yourself out of this, you monster. I'll be right here to stuff your mouth with dirt if I must."

When she lets his head drop again, she fails to see the cocky smile on his bloodied lips.

Reisen does notice, and gasps as though realizing something, gets on her feet, then whimpers "no. I can't believe it. They are right! You _are_ a monster!"

She stares at the knife, then says "I screamed, a-and you hit me. I... I trusted you, and you... Oh no, what have I been thinking?"

She rapidly walks over to the boy, kneels next to him, lifts his head, and exclaims "Ail, why? I always liked you, it's true, but what you did to me is just..."

She slaps his face and pulls away from him, then gulps and says "you used me! You were planning to use me again today, **WEREN'T YOU!?**"

Seeing Reisen return to her old self so suddenly elates Tewi to a happy giggle, and she even ignores as Ail softly groans "I am [_going to get you_] ...not that person."

The Moon Rabbit skillfully turns that knife around her hand until she's gripping it tight with the blade facing downward, walks closer to Ail, and tears suddenly roll down her eyes as she cries "I can't forgive you, Ail," and whispers "...my darling."

She lifts the knife above her head, holds it with both hands, looks down at the back of the boy's neck, her targeted spot, and hesitates.

Images start invading her mind, of a time when Ail constantly showed he valued her by merely helping her out, begging Eirin to not punish her, giggles when she remembers him being in his tiny dog form, and of how much he wanted to see her recover after that incident with her shadow self.

She also remembers how he came to her after Kyo's death, how destroyed he looked, and how he begged for the end, indirectly asking her for a drug to finish him. And then, how he jumped her.

She starts to shake hard and whimper softly, making Tewi get desperate and shout "do it already Udonge, please! I want you back! PLEASE!"

Reisen's trembling worsens, yet she keeps her eyes on the boy, as if wanting to convince herself that killing him will really bring her life back.

She takes a deep breath and quickly expels the held breath.

The girl lifts the knife higher, takes an even deeper breath than before, "RRRAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH", and throws the knife as far away as she can, so that nobody may catch it.

Tewi stares in shock at Reisen, her lips rapidly wriggle, she starts to sniffle, then loudly cries "Udonge, what the hell's the matter with you!? Go get that knife back, and finish the job!"

Reisen smiles as she looks at her old friend with her empty eyes, and whispers "I'm sorry. I just can't. He's too special to me."

The Earth Rabbit breaks down and cries, drops on her knees right next to Ail, and punches the ground while crying "no! No! NOOOOOOOO! No Reisen! You can't!"

Anilan groans with pain as he moves his head to look at the youkai rabbit, and weakly asks "what's going on?"

The youkai girl gets on her feet and runs away to the Bamboo Forest, ignoring the boy's words and leaving her subordinates confused, wondering what to do next.

Ail knows he can now escape if he wanted to, but then notices the pained and empty smile on the lilac haired girl, then looks at Eirin and asks "Eirin, what's going on? [_I want Reisen!_] ...Eirin, wh-what's happening!?"

The reluctant Lunarian looks at the boy, though this time her hatred seems to be overwhelmed by deep sorrow, and while Reisen walks over to her and the princess, she turns her full attention to the boy.

Kaguya gently wraps her arms around the slumped moon rabbit while sweetly saying "goodbye Inaba," then proceeds to kiss the girl in a ritualistic fashion; first on the left cheek, then on the right, and finally a long paused kiss on the forehead.

While this happens, Eirin sadly says "when a moon rabbit's mind is rendered useless, they become a danger to their masters and their species, and must be dealt with before it becomes a dangerous threat. I... think you understand what I'm talking about."

"Wait! No, Eirin... [_Bullshit! She's mine!_] Reisen, don't! K-Kill me! [_Just give her to me!_] Reisen, don't waste your life like this!"

Regardless of the boy's begging, the rabbit girl drops on her knees in front of Kaguya, while Eirin slowly makes her way to them.

He takes his chance to get up, and charges forward; "detain him," but Eirin's sudden bark helps the rabbits to regain their senses and hold on to the weakened boy.

The Lunarian Pharmacist pulls out a syringe with a purplish-red liquid inside, then kneels in front of her apprentice, and with a cracking voice, she says "I'm so sorry Udonge."

Reisen lifts her pale face and aims her empty red eyes at her master, smiles before she shakes her head, and says "no, Master. _I_ am sorry for all the trouble I caused you and the Princess."

"ERIN! EIRIN, DON'T! Please, stop this! [_Why do I feel guilty? It's her own fault for being weak!_] Don't kill her!"

Ail's screams seem to fall on deaf ears, and his struggle to break free makes him curse his half-youkai body for not recovering fast enough, and after one last struggle to get away, he gives up and watches.

Eirin reluctantly plunges that needle into Udonge's neck, then forces her eyes shut as she pushes the plunger and sinks the liquid inside her apprentice.

The dense boy starts to cry and repeatedly asks why, then suddenly screams "this is **_UNFAAAAAAAIIIIIIRRRRR!_**"

The rabbit girl starts convulsing and breathing rapidly; suddenly rolls on her back, both Eirin and Kaguya take her head and place it on their thighs, making the girl smile peacefully at them.

Reisen lifts her arm as her eyes slowly close, Eirin immediately grabs hold of it and lets her tears flow, then the happy looking rabbit girl softly says "you know, ...this isn't so bad. It feels ...peaceful."

A sob escapes both Lunarians, then Eirin gulps and with her cracked voice says "go now. You're a... a free rabbit now."

Udonge smiles and sighs, her eyes close, her hand drops on her chest, and Ail screams as hard as he can; his tears shedding as unstoppably as the aliens'; then everything stops, and the world slowly turns whitish grey, then it all becomes pure white in an instant.

* * *

"**_REISEN!_**", screams the boy as he springs off his bed of flowers with his hand raised in front of his chest.

He looks around the misty room, punches she right side of the bed, and curses "damn it! I almost had Eirin convinced! Grr! What did I do wrong?"

He watches curiously as the flower he punched slowly springs back to perfect health, then sighs after a while.

"U-fu-fu. You weren't meant to get that far, but still, almost convincing Master like that was a remarkable feat."

The boy turns his head to the right and smiles happily when he sees the Moon Rabbit sitting on a chair of yellow flowers, looking as healthy as ever, and giggling at his confusion.

"Miss Reisen! Are you alright? D-did it hurt? I'm so sorry!"

The girl lifts her hand to signal the boy to quiet down, and calmly says "it's alright. Like I said, it wasn't so bad; really. But Ail, I'm not here for this. We have to hurry. Because of those two intruders, your friends felt your pain outside. The Yama will tighten the security around here."

She walks over to him and says "first of all, wipe that sadness from yourself. As bad as it may seem, you didn't really do that much to me."

Ail raises an eyebrow, causing Reisen to laugh hysterically, then she quickly composes, her face becomes stern, then she says "Ail, what your other self, that broken self of yours did to me, was merely play with me."

"He toyed with my mind and stimulated my body, broke through some heavy mental defenses with his attacks until I became a mere mass of clay for him to play with."

The boy gulps, his face shows deep sadness, but before he falls into a depression, the girl gives him a tight hug and says "I'm so glad the real you still hasn't broken. You're so sweet, and you do value me as a friend. That's why I like you and Rika so much."

She lets him go after she is certain the boy's heart is at ease, then says "but listen Ail, there is one thing. As broken as you were, I saw it, right inside your eyes. You were hurt and you were scared, and the only reason you did what you did, was because you needed an escape."

The girl looks at the boy in the eyes, and as they sit on the bed, she continues "you were hurt, because despite everything you tried to make Reimu happy, you failed. You felt you failed her. You were also mad at her and Remilia because for the fact of her inability to have a child."

"You were scared because deep inside, you knew that what you were doing was hurting me, that you were destroying our friendship, but the pain of losing Kyo was too great, so you forced yourself, hoping to gain pleasure and defeat the sadness."

The boy sighs, looks to the misty grass between his bare feet, and says "Miss Reisen, I'm sorry. I- ...That other me was a real monster. I wish I could undo what he did."

She places her finger on his lips and continues "despite of your hitting me, then playing with my body like that, I never hated you. True, I was mad and scared, but I could never hate you, you know. And that promise you made me kept me going, even in the end."

Before he can ask the obvious question about said promise, Reisen continues "now that you understand that, you _must_ understand that there were other girls you harmed emotionally, others your other self really _did_ defile, and in my opinion, I think Byakuren got the worst of it all."

Ail opens his eyes wide, his skin loses all its color, he wants to ask what happened, but then the girl sternly says "ah-ah-ah! No way. You have to find out for yourself, or you'll never be able to go back to how you were. Oh, you were just so much cuter the first time you got to Gensokyo."

His cheeks quickly turn red, causing the Moon Rabbit to giggle quite contently as she gets back up on her feet.

She turns her neck to look back at him, smiles, then says "time's up. Your next goal is Myouren. Good luck Ail."

"Hey wait," shouts Ail as the world around slowly turns white. "What was that promise I made to you?"

Reisen turns around again, chuckles mischievously, giving the boy a bad feeling, then says "you promised me that you would one day return, and would either undo what you did to me, or take me with you and finish what we started."

The world around them turns brighter, and a low whirring rings around their ears as the girl winks and sticks out her tongue, and playfully says "and I was _SO_ hoping you'd fulfill the latter! Tee-he-he!"

Ail scowls, his face turns so red it contrasts with the blinding white, and reprimands "M-Miss Reisen! That is highly improper!"

As the world around them turns brighter and the whirring gets louder, the boy can hear the Moon Rabbit's playful laughter, and somehow feels a lot less tense than he did moments before, even when feeling so embarrassed about the girl's behavior.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Hakurei Shrine's storage house at the back of the shrine, as the orange wintery sky starts turning black, Shikieiki walks out of said place while pocketing her reset machine, closes her eyes, then suddenly sighs, opens her eyes again, and says to herself "well, this was to be expected."

Before long, she is swept off her feet and carried away to the back of the shrine by Mima, the supposedly evil spirit, who holds her under the arms.

The spirit has long green hair that reaches her ghostly tail, green eyes, and wears a blue cone hat with a yellow sun adorning it, a blue robe with long white sleeves, and a blue cape with white edges.

She look furious as she carries the nonchalant Yama to the lake behind said shrine, then drops her on the ground at the other side of the lake, and pokes her chest.

"What was that just now, Yama! Why did I just feel Ail's presence!? He was in great pain! Are you watching over him? We want him to go back to the way he was before, not torture his mind until it breaks!"

Shikieiki's blue eyes keep on the spirit's own, and though sounding calm, it is clear she is a little annoyed. "So says the one that kept killing him to blow off her steam."

"Don't go bringing that up now," barks the woman. "You promised he would be safe, and yet here we are, feeling his overwhelming emotions as if he's calling us for help!"

"You sure can grow attached to people," murmurs the Yama, before sighing and continuing "calm down, he's fine. Just look for yourself."

She hands over the round machine that's currently glowing blue to the spirit, and while the woman inspects it closely, Eiki says "I don't understand exactly why, but his feelings managed to get through to Gensokyo, but as you can see, the reset took effect, and he is emotionally stable once more."

Mima clicks her tongue after returning the machine, then says "this is why I wanted out. This is too much. Yes, I overdid it too, but this mental strain is just too much for him! Death would be a blessing compared to this hell we put him through!"

She starts to huff while playing with her own hair, and reveals her pointy ears to the shorter girl before her, but she's so upset, she doesn't seem to care one bit.

Shiki stares at the spirit for a moment, then warns "careful Mima. You are a vengeful spirit, and although I should just pass judgment on you right now, I feel I would be making a mistake. Regardless of my feelings, you must be careful with yours. You are too attached to those two, and that could make you ascend."

"Although I should encourage you to do just that, I think those two I mentioned would be a bit upset if you just suddenly disappeared. Especially Ail. I'm sure he'll want to talk to you when he gets back."

The spirit just sighs to calm herself down, then says "don't worry; I still hold a certain grudge against the humans. I just decided I don't want to act on it, so I can do whatever I want."

Shikieiki stares at the evil spirit, who looks away with a nostalgic look on her face and says "I know he's not really my concern, but he did free me from that room, you know. Twice! Ahh, I remember it like it was today~"

_FLASHBACK~_

Mima remembers herself lying on her futon inside that very small room, lit with a magical oil lamp on a corner table, with her hands behind her head, looking as bored as one can get, and slowly closing her eyes.

"_I was all alone, locked inside that sealed prison with absolutely nothing to do but think. I got so bored in there that I was about to fly around in a screaming rampage. Heheheh, I was even focusing power to myself to begin the crazed flailing... but I didn't do it. Wonder why._"

She remembers how she suddenly got up and started to cackle, then began to pace around the room while saying "just you wait, you red and white! I am going to escape from here, and when I do, I'm going to stuff all your holes with leaves and set them on fire, then cook your eyeballs while I watch you scream in agony. MUAHAHAHAHAHA~! Oh, it will be so delicious!"

She stops, chuckles to herself, then says "nah... I'll probably just pull her hair while she sleeps... Hmm, and the poor dear does need to eat too. Tch, the curse of having a body. I guess I'll give her some money too."

"_I started to do what I always do when I get bored beyond mental sanity, and started elaborating on how to get back at Reimu with all sorts of pranks. Of course, I may have also been a bit delirious and may have said some stuff about money for Reimu. Hmm. Ahh, but that's when that door suddenly opened up._"

She remembers looking at the door and staring at the red and white charms on it as they break in half while the door opens up, and curiously asking "wait, what's this?", then looking upon the miniature body of Ail in his cute little dog form.

"_Ail was in his adorable tiny dog form when he opened that door. He just stood there, wondering if he had made some sort of mistake by opening my prison door. Heheh, he looked so cute, I just wanted to eat him up. Of course, I knew he wasn't a dog, but still ...so cute!_"

She remembers questioning the little dog boy about the opening of that sealed door and his answer in that high-pitched voice: "I'm so sorry. Didn't mean to bother you, Miss. I was just wondering who was in here."

Mima's ghostly tail makes a loud popping noise, and a pair of legs suddenly adorn the lower half of her body, and looking smug and proud, she declares "I am the great and powerful Mima! I'm sure you have heard of me", then looking disappointed when he lowers his doggy ears and casually answers "sorry, I haven't..."

"_Silly boy. I'm sure Reimu cursed my name in front of him a few times and he just forgot. Ah, but after a quick exchange of some friendly words, we went outside, got bombarded with yin-yang orbs, and then I realized I had left my staff inside the room, so Reimu let me stay outside as punishment. Ahh, Ail looked so cute weeping like that. And then I drank sake._"

_FLASHBACK OVER~_

The supposedly evil spirit sighs with delight after her flashback is done, then dreamily says "I wonder if I could force him to take that dog form again? He looked so cute, and I always did think he looked better like that."

Shikieiki is not sure whether she should laugh, sympathize, or be disappointed in the evil spirit, regardless, she lifts her Rod of Remorse to hide her lips, and says "causing an accidental attachment to the none-existent heart of a spirit. That Ail is a weird one. Regardless, Mima, don't worry about the boy any longer. He is safe. Those hardships he will endure will make him stronger, steel his will, and return his spirit to what it was long before."

The magic spirit stares at the Yama, sighs, then nods, but before she speaks, Eiki says "the bad experiences lived there will be buried in his subconscious, and will only surface when he is ready for them. That was your own contribution to this learning experience for him."

Mima smiles, chuckles, and then says "yes, you're right. I forgot about that. Hmm, he's going to be alright after all."

* * *

The next morning, at the front of the shrine, where the usually-empty donation box sits in wait on the veranda for worshipers to make it all the way up the insanely long stairs to it, Rika Onkamikami sweeps the bit of snow that piled up on the short track to said box during the early hours of the morning.

The radiant shrine maid, who has finally shut off her Soraogan blood limit, has sky blue eyes, long wavy brown hair that reaches to her lower back, where it's tied to her fiery-red scarf she puts around her neck, a small pair of soft-looking white angel wings, and wears a white sleeveless shirt with openings large enough to reveal her black, spaghetti string camisole-like bra, detached sleeves that reach all the way to her hands, her red skirt with the white band on the edges, her sapphire yin-yang around her neck, and a cute pair of light blue socks.

She also has her curve-enhancing belt fastened snugly around her waist, giving her hips a curvier look, and it is now tied at the back.

She sighs contently as she swipes the sweat out of her forehead, then says to herself "noting like a job well done to start the day."

"Are you sure tying your hair to your scarf's ends like that is a good idea?" asks a very familiar voice from behind.

The shrine maid turns around with a bright smile on her face, bows politely, and says "good morning Miss Reimu. You are looking radiant this morning. ...Please allow me a moment to prepare your breakfast."

Reimu Hakurei, who wears a large red ribbon on her wavy and straight hair, a white shirt under a red vest, white detached sleeves, and a red skirt, chuckles at the maid, and says "ohh, dodging my question, eh? Fine, see if I worry about you again."

Rika's cheeks turn pink as she frowns and cries "ack! I'm sorry My Lady! Please forgive my insolence! I'll be good! I'll be gooooood~!"

The shrine maiden can't help but grin and blush upon looking at that adorable face unsettling like that, and as the maid flaps her arms around while apologizing, she notices the bra under that shirt, and a trickle of blood rolls down her nose.

"Kyaaaah~! Miss Reimu, you're bleeding!", exclaims the unsettled maid, rushing to the red and white and wiping her nose with a napkin, to which the shrine maiden casually says "oh come on. It's fine, I'm fine."

"As for your question, My Lady," continues Rika as she guides her mistress to the table inside, "tying my hair like this allows for greater movement without the hindrance of my long hair. It'll be harder for anyone to grip my hair while I move since it won't be lagging behind. Not to mention less chance of it tangling or getting caught anywhere."

The red and white one merely nods in assent after being seated, then Suzaku, a youkai bird with red feathers all over its body with hints of white under its wings and white eyes, lands on the table in front of the shrine maiden, and telepathically says "_good morning mom. I see you are as delighted as I am with Mater's new attire._"

Reimu grins widely, pats the bird on the head, then says "oh you bet your wing feathers I am! She looks so cute and so sexy now! Heheh, but teasing aside, she looks wonderful."

There is a loud explosion coming from the roof of the shrine, then the lovely celestial's voice; which happens to annoy the Hakurei Maiden greatly; rings all around the shrine grounds as she calls "Rika~! I came over early, so I'm coming with you today~!"

Tenshi Hinanai, who has dark red eyes, long blue hair, and wears a light-blue scarf around her neck, a round black hat adorned with heavenly peaches, a pink dress with colorful borders at the bottom, and a long blue skirt and brown cross-laced boots, enters the shrine with a sack of peaches hanging from her shoulder, and says "I even brought some heavenly nourishment! Ohh, Reimu, good morning."

Even the violent shrine maiden settles down after such a warm greeting, holds the bridge of her nose for a second, then casually says "yeah, yeah, good morning."

"What an improper greeting," comments the celestial, getting a vein to pop out of the red and white's forehead, though she doesn't care.

She walks to the kitchen, where Rika turns around with a spin and sweetly says "thank you so much for coming so early Chik-err, I mean Tenshi. You're a sweetheart. And thank you for your kind gift," then turns around with another spin to continue cooking breakfast.

The celestial freezes just as she was; walking towards the maid; with her face slightly red, her eyes sparkling, hearts popping around her head, and a bit of blood trailing down her nose.

Reimu and Suzaku share a quick chuckle, then the vermilion bird says "_she lost a life almost immediately._"

Before Reimu replies, the witch with yellow eyes, blonde hair with its left strand tied with a purple ribbon, that wears a black witch's hat with a purple ribbon adorning it, and a black and white witch's dress with a white apron, flies straight inside the shrine's living quarters on her broom, and exclaims "wa-haaa! Morning, ze! Ready to go to the Netherworld!? I'm dying to see what goin' on there," then whispers "and maybe get a little sumtin' for myself."

Marisa Kirisame grins cockily at her dear friend Reimu's annoyance, sniffs vulgarly, then exclaims "that smells WONDERFUL! I'll LOVE eating your breakfast so early in the morning, Rika!"

The sweet maid almost sings as she replies "please wait a little longer~ It will be worth the wait~ Te-heh-heh."

Reimu slams her forehead as brutally hard as possible against the table without hurting herself too badly, and while Suzaku stares at her with concern, the girl moans "where did my peaceful morning go? That sung sentence was supposed to be **mine!**"

A large sweat drop rolls down the side of the red bird, then she flies away to her perch above the entrance to the rooms corridor, and says "_Rika-sama's power has increased unexpectedly high. I must take higher precautions._"

Marisa just stares at her friend in confusion, and hops off the broom before asking "what? Reimu, what's the matter with ya? Reimu~?"

The Hakurei Shrine Maiden just stares subtle daggers at her dear friend, and then darkly says "just sit down and eat fast. We're all going to Hakugyokurou with Rika as soon as we're done!"

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Kyo and Luna Rivers were created by Willie G.R.

Brightness, Overwhelming Heart; Mad Waves, Raging Ocean (derived from Mad Waves, Raging Waves); and Blast Sign, Expansion That Soothes spell cards were created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami and Suzaku the Vermilion bird were created by Snapshot 2010

JUN 3 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**As you can see, I really want to keep this from being a full-blown dark fic, however there will be chapters where comedy will be barely present. I'll keep doing my best, ze. Take care.**

* * *

Yukari: And here ends another lazy re-edit. Hmm wait, some parts look like you did a re-write. I'm impressed.

Me: Tch! You don't have to say it like that!

Yukari: OF course I must. You're a lazy slob.


	3. Chapter 3

**NOTES: **Keep a sharp eye up. I think I finally succeeded in making certain transitions confusing enough. Also, this chapter also ended up being a little longer than I had wanted it, but not long enough to be able to split it successfully. I still hope you enjoy it.

Legend: [_i_] = a sudden thought between the dialogue.

Dec 21 2012 - Rewrote many portions of this chapter, some quite larger than others. Hopefully it will make reading this a lot easier, and will make some scenes easier to follow as well.

* * *

That first winter morning at Mayohiga, the somber Yukari gazes upon her pyramid-like item as its light turns green, then yawns before groggily saying "I took care of them. They're not coming back. See? The world is not detecting their presence anymore."

From a gap to her right, Shikieiki sighs and says "I hope you are right. Thanks to those three, Ail's feelings were felt by all of those with some attachment to him. I am certain you felt his sorrow as well."

The blonde youkai gulps and grimaces, then stares more intently at the machine and says "seriously Eiki, I don't see them in here, though I am a bit concerned. I don't remember seeing those three exit the world either."

"They could ruin things in there," concernedly sighs the Yama. "Alright, I guess I can keep an eye out on them too, but this is starting to get in the way of my job. Yukari, you'll have to take a little more responsibility, at least for a little while."

The gap youkai chuckles as if amused, then says "fine. I guess I'll have to show Ran how to use this after all. You know what happens to me when winter comes."

"You do that," sternly says the Yama while she's apparently rummaging through some papers and wooden items on her desk. "That evil spirit was really upset when she felt the boy's suffering, so we'll have to make twice as sure that Ail remains stable, or she'll be causing trouble for us."

Something about those words strike Yukari as worrisome, her usual confident smile vanishes, and her somber state lifts, as if it was never there.

She nods at the gap, says "I see. Tch! That emotional fool. His attachment to his friends is a really huge hindrance, and I hope, for his sake, that he manages to loosen those bonds a bit."

Inside the gap, Shikieiki's upper body can be seen clearly, while the rest hides behind a desk in that strange dark room that is her courtroom.

From there she shakes her head, and says "no. It's those ties that have made him so strong ...Though I admit, it is also the reason he has made such poor choices whilst living in Gensokyo, so perhaps you are correct."

The gap youkai chuckles playfully along the Yama, then both sigh at the same time, then the blonde says "I guess I better get to work. I will look inside for a bit before teaching Ran."

Shikieiki nods once, and then says "please do. The safer that world is the better for him. He has plenty to deal with already."

The gap slowly closes up, while Yukari chuckles and says "working with the Yama. Still feels strange," then starts looking straight at the pyramid.

Her eyes glow lightly, then she starts to see the world within in a translucent manner.

She can see Ail is waking up again, with Reimu kneeling besides him and rubbing her cheek against his, while Rika keeps herself behind the dragon statue while keeping a wary eye on the boy.

"_Well, he's waking up again. Everything looks fine over here. Perhaps I'll check elsewhere._"

As she thinks this, the translucent world inside the pyramid seems to move at blinding speeds throughout all Gensokyo, but just as she's reaching the Moriya Shrine, her eyes start feeling heavy, her entire body starts feeling weak, and Yukari suddenly just drops on her pillow, moaning "wha... happened?"

The pyramid tumbles out of her hands, though it doesn't get too far, and just sits there, a mere inch away from the sleeping youkai's hand, and after a few seconds, girly giggles come from within the item itself.

It tries to turn purple again, but quickly becomes green on its own, as if everything is alright.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Hakurei Shrine, Reimu and Marisa step out of the shrine and walk toward the storage house while the red and white says "I don't care. We've waited long enough for her! We're going now, so lock up! She'll follow us, so don't you worry!"

From the veranda, Rika sighs and says "don't be so mean, Miss Reimu. Those sort of things happen to everyone."

The witch chuckles mischievously, then says "you have to admit, that celestial's face was just priceless! I wish I had my camera, ze!"

The angelic maid can be heard puffing from the veranda, and before comments are made, she exclaims "stop making fun of Tenshi. And My Lady, can't we wait just a few more minutes? I'm sure she'll be back soon!"

The red and white chuckles mischievously, whispers to Marisa "she looks so cute when she puffs her cheeks like that," then loudly says "fine, fine, we'll wait for the messy celestial."

The angelic maid claps her hands, flaps her small wings, and cheers while bouncing in place, causing her chest's mounds to bounce around with her, while happily chirping "Miss Reimu is the greatest!"

Reimu's and Marisa's blissful faces flush at the sight of that happy bouncy girl, then the shrine maiden chuckles and flips a thumb up while a bit of blood trickles down from her nose.

The black and white moans like some sort of zombie, then blissfully says "Reimu, you lucky bitch. You got cute and sexy on one package like that."

"_Don't forget wonderfully sweet, kind, and with a heart of gold,_" telepathically says Suzaku as she flies around in a circle above the perverted girls' heads.

She dives and lands on Marisa's shoulder just as the worried angelic girl rushes over to her mistress to clean her face, and adds "_and sometimes adorably unaware of some things_."

Rika is cleaning her blissful mistress' face while crying "please, My Lady, you really should see a doctor! That's the second time today!"

There is that familiar loud boom coming from the front of the shrine, then Tenshi's familiar voice hurriedly calling "I got it! I cleaned it up! Let's go! Rika, you were waiting for me, right!?"

The angelic maid twists her torso to look back with a smile, failing to notice Reimu's soured face, and calls "we're back here Momoko~! Come on, hurry!"

They can hear the celestial's huffs as she rushes over to them, and shortly see her dashing toward them with a slightly humid wintery-blue scarf messily placed around her neck, flailing dangerously behind her, where it almost tangles with one of the dry branches of the trees there.

Rika giggles as she takes a step toward her friend; Tenshi stops right in front of the maid and grips the front of the scarf before cheering "got it cleaned! I can't believe I stained such an important gift with soup!"

The maid giggles again, tenderly calls her friend's name, then slowly places her hands on the celestial's cheeks, causing the black and white to gasp and chuckle with mischievous delight.

Tenshi tries to ask her friend what she's doing, but with her face and ears burning from the excitement and embarrassment, she can only stammer incoherent words.

Rika smiles very sweetly at the blue haired girl, grabs the scarf, and easily pulls it free, then sweetly says "Tenshi, you dummy. That's not how you wear a scarf. You'll catch a cold."

"Here, let me help you," continues the girl as she stands on the tip of her toes and gently arranges the warm yet humid garment around the flushed celestial's neck.

Marisa clicks her tongue in disappointment, while Reimu watches the scene distantly, her eyes seemingly gazing elsewhere, while Suzaku notices something on the shrine maiden, but merely watches in silence.

Meanwhile, the lucky celestial is enjoying the extra attention and gentleness of the angelic maid as she gently secures the scarf, letting just enough strand hanging to the right, then said girl stands back and sweetly says "there; all done. It's still a bit wet, silly, but you should be fine like that, right?"

With the warm event over, Tenshi feels herself recovering from that lovely blow, and of all the words she can think of saying, her jumbled mind allows "th-than-err, I mean, d-don't think so lightly of me! You should know how tough I am! And I'm a celestial to boot! I'm not going to succumb to such a silly disease as a-CHOOO!"

The angelic girl smiles as she hands her friend a napkin, and says "bless you."

The blue haired celestial turns her eyes away as she accepts the offer, and softly says "um, err, th-thanks Rika."

"Alright, alright, that's enough of that," exclaims Reimu while clapping her hands twice.

Regaining her usual fiery look, she points to the sky and says "come on, let's go to the Netherworld already. Unless you two rather stay alone in the shrine?"

With that said, and both Tenshi and Rika blush while chuckling nervously, the shrine maiden grins, chuckles to herself, then takes flight, followed by Marisa, who calls "you shouldn't have stopped them, you know."

Suzaku flies after them, saying "_Miss Marisa, you are being awfully nosy,_" to which the witch merely scoffs at and speeds after Reimu.

Rika giggles nervously as she looks at her friend, and says "come on Momoko. Let's see what all that Miss Eiki said was about."

Tenshi grins, takes off after the maid, grabs her in mid flight and holds her bridal style, then happily says "you're a slowpoke, Hime! Let's go faster! I want to get to see something new today! Exciting~!"

The shrine maid allows herself to be carried off, chuckles softly, then playfully says "please don't drop me."

* * *

Meanwhile, it's Spring at the Human Village, and where there are couples, Ail isn't even noticed, while where there are singles, the boy can feel their gazes piercing through his skin.

He is carrying a box of burnable garbage toward its destined location at the north-western part of the village, and aside from the few glaring singles, he is glad is isn't being noticed so much, though is obviously confused as to why he feels this way.

Having finally reached his destination; a wide range littered with burnable garbage that's surrounded by a simple wooden fence; he sets his box at the farthest edge, dusts his hands with a satisfactory huff, then says to himself "that was a little harder than I thought. Still, [_dammit all, I should be out there having fun!_] this should please Rika and my honey enough."

He gazes around, admiring the many flowers growing all over the village outside that garbage range, and gasps when he sees Reisen, but she seems strange.

Her skin looks transparent, her clothes seem weathered and broken, there's a red stain on the side of her neck, and her eyes glow bright red as she glares at him with hatred.

She takes off running toward the exit of the village, then he hears her voice in his mind, echoing as she shouts "_what the heck do you think you are doing, Anilan? MOVE! Get going to Myourenji!_"

He doesn't know why, and repeats to himself "I must be insane," but he takes off running after her, jumping over the simple wooden fence, and huffing as he speeds off after the ghostly girl.

"Wait! ...Miss Reisen," calls the boy between pants, trying and failing to catch up to the girl.

He runs past Luna's weathered house and starts to lose his patience when, regardless of all his attempts, can't seem to even get near the Moon Rabbit, and after a frustrated pant, he says "dammit, what the hell is _wrong_ with me? I used to match Orin's speed!"

In his mind he can see himself in the past, back when he had first entered Gensokyo, long before he could even see spell cards, running from Chireiden to the surface in a race against Orin, a kasha with long, fiery-red hair tied to the sides in braids with black ribbons, black cat ears above her human ears, two tails, red eyes, who wears a greenish-black dress.

He remembers how they taunted each other during said race, sticking out their tongues and pulling on their eyelids, and speeding up like demons out of hell, and it finally hit him.

"_That's right! I **can **catch up_", thinks the boy before suddenly kicking the ground only slightly harder, and off he goes, running at incredible speeds and getting closer to the rabbit's ghostly figure.

He's not even breaking a sweat and he's running as fast as a car after Reisen, and with a confident smile on his face he starts to laugh, then says "you're not getting away from me now!"

He is having such a good time with his rediscovered speed; one he already knew, but was blocked from accessing it inside that world; that he fails to realize that he is being followed by something else.

Ail gasps, lifts his hands defensively as he tries to stop himself, lifting up a thick cloud of dust as he skids several feet forward, and finally falls on his butt and stops five feet in front of the ghostly girl, who just stands in place and stares at him as if ready to strike him.

Reisen roars furiously as she throws herself at the boy, bearing a set of dangerous-looking sharp claws and long and pointy fangs inside her blood-red mouth, scaring all the color off the boy's skin.

She grips his neck, pushes him against the ground, snarls on his face, staining him with bloody drool, and then roars "why are you stopping? Myourenji! **Keep going to the Myouren Temple! RAAAARGH!**"

She swings her claw straight at his face, and just as she's touching his skin, she disappears.

Anilan shivers a bit, glances around, then asks "wh-what [_what the fuck was that all about? Crazy bitch!_] just happen? R-Reisen? Myouren?"

He hears footsteps to his left and rolls right on to his feet, then hears a rustle from a lonely tree to the right and turns around, then waits while keeping his eyes peeled, wondering if he is going to be attacked.

"HI AIL!" screams a girl from behind him, making him yelp and jump away in fright.

The girl has a wide-brimmed sun hat over her shoulder-length blonde hair, yellow eyes, and wears a blue and white maid's dress, with a pair of elbow-length gloves adorning her hands and arms.

She giggles at the sight of the boy who almost pees his pants with fright, and playfully coos "ooh, what a lovely reaction. I might just make this my new habit."

The boy's hand glows white as he smiles vilely at the girl before him, and before she notices, he's holding her by the back of the neck and getting the white hand closer to her face.

"Listen well Miss Anaberal," he begins with that toothy grin of evil. "Don't think for a second that I'll just let you do with me as you please, understand?"

The girl chuckles nervously, nods twice, then says "calm down, I was just having a little fun with you. And please call me Kana. You're making me sound old."

Ail raises an eyebrow and asks "and how old are you?"

He earns himself a slap that sends him five feet down the road, and then the blushing girl sways her hips around while holding her face with her hands and says "young man, you shouldn't ask a lady such rude questions. You could get hurt."

"Got it [_I really want to kill you_]," groans the boy as he pushes himself up.

The maid girl looks around, thinks "_that's right. I better not tell him about this dream, or I might get punished too,_" then asks "so where are you going? Can I come too?"

Ail's face seems to brighten up, nods energetically, and says "that would be great. Maybe you can help me scare away that ghost that wanted to maim me just now."

They begin their walk down the road to the Myouren Temple, then the girl casually says "sure, but you know I'm a poltergeist, right?"

"Is that different?" asks the clueless boy.

"We are different, so don't confuse us with those spectral things," replies the girl with a proud tone.

"Aren't you a spectral thing too?" asks the confused boy.

Kana punches his head, making him bend over and hold his new bump in pain, then says "I told you to not confuse us just now. What kind of idiot are you?"

That same invisible magical wave from last time passes by the duo, making Ail feel dizzy and confused, and when it stops, he straightens up, looks around, then says "what was that just now?"

Kana is no longer there, though it seems he's not even noticing she's missing, and after shaking his head to recover from the daze, he looks toward the road and says to himself "right, the temple. ...Gotta move."

* * *

Meanwhile, Reimu, Suzaku and Marisa are the first to arrive to the Netherworld, a place that's dreadful for the living, being cold, mysterious, always full of choking mists, and sure there are a few trees along the long, long stairs up, but they are currently dead, and give no feeling of welcome.

Shortly after admiring their surroundings, Rika and Tenshi land behind the girls, the bird perches on the witch's shoulder, then the celestial whistles and says "whoa. I've never seen such a spooky and desolate place that feels as coldly welcome as this."

"Why thank you," begins a sweet and whimsical voice. "It makes me glad to know my Youmu's hard work to keep this place up is appreciated by none other than a celestial."

The shrine maiden looks up, sighs with annoyance, and asks "_can_ a celestial even be in here without causing some trouble for you?"

Yuyuko Saigyouji, Princess of the Netherworld, who has short and wavy pink hair she adorns with a light-blue mop cap that has a ghost band with a red swirl motif on its center, has maroon eyes, and is wearing a light-blue kimono with spirits drawn on it, giggles quite contently, then says "don't worry, I don't mind her being here. Besides, she won't leave without that angel girl."

"Damned right I'm not leaving without Rika! Right Rika!?" proudly says the celestial, getting a rather nervous chuckle from her angelic friend, while Reimu and Marisa seem to be joke-gagging behind their backs.

Yuyuko stares at them with narrowed eyes, then coos and says "that sounded less appealing than I thought. Regardless, welcome to the Netherworld."

"Hold on," suspiciously exclaims Marisa. "What's up with this scenery today? Where's Youmu to do the actual greetings while trying to kick us out by means of a sword and threats?"

"Ooh, I'm glad you asked," happily chirps the ghostly princess. "My special guest, Rika of the Onkamikami clan, has to pass a few trials before I'll allow her inside Hakugyokurou to meet her old new friend. Youmu happens to be one of those trials."

Rika looks up at the woman with interest, and asks "what did you mean by 'old new friend', Lady Yuyuko?"

The ghostly princess giggles playfully, then sweetly says "never mind that now. Now all you have to worry about is passing your first trial."

The angelic maid's face gets full of confidence and determination, and raising a fist next to her face, she bravely says "I'm ready, Lady Yuyuko! Please tell me what I have to do!"

Behind her, Marisa, Reimu, Tenshi, and even Suzaku are murmuring amongst each other while placing bets on Rika's success.

Said maid turns a casual face toward the girls, whom immediately stop all that they are doing to look as innocent as if nothing was happening, then the red bird squawks and exclaims "_good luck Rika-sama~!_"

"Well then, it's quite difficult, but I know you can do it," begins the whimsical ghost as she flies toward a wide platform to the left of the fiftieth stair.

This takes the angelic girl's attention away from her friends, allowing them to continue their murmured bets, then Yuyuko coos and finishes "**you** have to cook me my breakfast."

The girls all look disappointed at the princess, then Tenshi says "only that? That doesn't sound like a trial to me."

From higher up on the stairs, Youmu can be heard screaming "HEY! That is _NOT_ the first trial!"

"And you have to do it naked in an apron," rapidly adds Yuyuko before Rika could ask what was the catch.

The three girls and bird behind the maid quickly suffer from long strings of blood hanging from their nostrils, as they silently pump their fists (and wing) in a mute cheer, while Youmu can be heard moaning and saying "and I'm going to miss it!? That's not fair, Yuyu-sama!"

Rika can only stare toward the platform to hide her shock, while her cheeks turn bright red from the embarrassing thought of having to strip down naked and cooking a meal for the ghostly princess.

Yuyuko chuckles playfully, shakes her head, then flies down to the maid's side while casually saying "oh my, that was just a joke. You don't really have to be naked in an apron."

"Stop making fun of everyone," shouts Youmu from the distance.

"Oh, come on! That's not funny," complains Reimu, clearly disappointed at the sudden turn of events.

"How do you kill a ghost?", asks Tenshi as she holds her shut-off Sword of Hisou while shaking in anger.

"That Yuyuko really knows how to throw a party, ze," casually comments Marisa while resting her head on her hands behind herself.

Suzaku flies over to the ghost princess, tweets once, then says "_please don't be mean to Rika-sama! She's a very sweet girl._"

Yuyuko merely giggles to all of that, and continues "now Rika, you have to be sure I will enjoy this meal, and you can't make me wait too long, or I'll have you fail."

"Leave it to me, Lady Yuyuko," confidently says the angel-winged maid, and in the blink of an eye, she's already on that platform, chopping vegetables and meat on an impressive outdoors kitchen.

Reimu sighs as she watches her maid cook like never before, then says "leave it to Yuyuko to get herself a feast from what are supposed to be a set of serious trials."

The pink haired woman opens her fan to hide her whimsical smile behind it, then sweetly says "nobody ever said these were supposed to be serious trials."

"Breakfast is ready~", sings the shrine maid from the platform, and that ghost quickly takes off as fast as Marisa flies on her broom.

While said witch and the celestial "ooh" and "ah" at the speeding ghost glutton, the red and white turns away with her teeth gritted and bare, suppressing a shriek of frustration, then mutters "she's supposed to sing like that for me!"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Myouren Temple, the flowers planted by Ichirin grow all around the inside of the walls that protect the sacred grounds.

"There are so many of them growing this time. Yuka would be proud," comments Ail as he looks to the temple from a safe distance.

It's true that the temple and its surroundings look beautiful that spring day, but there is a fact unsettling the boy greatly, and that is the lack of youkai walking around inside those walls that make a semi-hourglass shape.

Not only that, but there is a cold and heavy feeling emanating from the main building, and with the dense one's affinity with energy patterns, it is easy for him to tell, there is no welcome coming from that usually-friendly temple.

"I wonder what's going on," calmly mumbles the boy. "I never thought this place would feel so cold and unwelcome. Maybe that's why Miss Reisen wanted me to come here."

He stands there, admiring the flowers adorning the sides of the steps leading to the main temple building, then sighs and says to himself "I better go and check it out. Oh man, what am I getting myself into?"

Only one step is taken and he already feels the ground shake terribly hard, so he instinctively stops moving to look around.

The ground shakes a second time, this time accompanied by the muffle sound of something bashing against hard soil from beneath it.

There is a third, a fourth, a fifth muffle boom, Ail gulps, and the next second he's forcefully flying forward, screaming as large pieces of dirt as big as his head fly upward with him, and threaten to crush him as he falls.

Thankfully, he merely rolls safely as soon as he lands, manages to get on his feet while the large chunks of dirt crash around and behind him, turns around to face this new danger, and that's when all the blood on his face drains to the bottom of his stomach.

Two giant centipedes that are as long as three houses put together screech as they look at their half-youkai prey, whom has lost his mind to fear, and only whimpers with each erratic breath taken as he stares back at the giant poisonous bugs.

One has a shiny brown hard shell for a body, the other is plated in black and yellow, and both have wide oval red eyes that seem to buzz as they shine bright; even out in broad daylight; hundreds of sharp-looking yellow legs, and dual stingers with red tips on their backsides.

Ail wants to scream, but his throat seems to be blocked by his own hard-beating heart and shortly after managing to breathe in, he turns around and runs toward the temple, still unable to scream.

The brown worm cuts his path and the boy drop on his butt to stop himself from even getting close to the disgusting bug, and now finds himself trapped between two giant poisonous worms that keep running around him in a semi-circle at ridiculous speeds.

The dense boy whimpers as he pushes himself with his feet in a useless circle, and after a pathetic whine, he manages to speak as though out of breath. "Wha-where should..."

He gasps when he notices the black centipede is looking at him, and screams as he stands and runs again when that black monster suddenly lunges itself at him.

The boy finally manages to scream "SOMEONE HELP MEEEEE!" almost sounding like a girl.

He feels he just made the greatest mistake by raising his voice toward that gloomy temple, but he's too terrified to care about that, and sees no other way out of such a terrible predicament.

To his luck, whether good or bad, the temple still seems to be unaware of his presence, yet he still has these monstrous centipedes running after him faster than he can; and he is giving it his all.

The brown bug cuts him off again, and startles the boy into dropping his spell card as he throws himself to the ground again.

The black centipede lifts the back of its body, then throws its sharp tail at Ail, who reacts by shooting three focused orange orbs that go right through the creature.

The boy quickly throws himself to the right to avoid the poisonous stingers, desperately looks around, breathing fast and hard through his mouth, then he feels something odd coming from a particular tree to the left.

"Nue," he growls under his shivering breath, and shoots several explosive orbs at the tree with the source of undefined energy.

The orbs turn the tree's top to splinters, a bird chirps loud, as though being killed slowly by a hungry cat, and slowly but surely, the centipedes vanish, leaving no trace of their presence behind.

With his body slowly relaxing, Ail heads towards the destroyed tree, scowling and growling as he dreams of ways to punish Nue for putting him through that frightening ordeal.

When he arrives to the mess of splinters and burnt wood, he is surprised to find the place devoid of any youkai.

His attention suddenly turns left toward the temple, after some rustling from the grass startles him, then he sees a large snake rapidly slithering its way back home.

"Oh no you don't you little bi-err, I mean, witch! That was just too cruel," calls the boy as he runs after that little snake, which seems to understand the boy's words of anger, and merely speeds up after sticking its tongue out at him.

Ail runs after it with white scowls for eyes, shouting "ora, ora, ora, ora! I'll teach you a less-"

And he stops immediately when he comes face-to-face with Kyouko Kasodani, the yamabiko youkai with short wavy teal hair and eyes, big floppy brown ears, a cute brown tail, who wears a pink and rose dress with teal flower-shaped buttons and a white dress underneath.

Ail and Kyoko look into each others' eyes for a total of fifty-six seconds, then the boy smiles at her, raises his left hand and waves his fingers at her, then softly says "hey Miss Kyouko. How are you?"

The yamabiko youkai screams right on the boy's face as she flaps her ears, and then she starts to cry.

* * *

Kyouko screams out loud as she falls on the snow, flapping her ears and swinging her broom around as her face becomes redder with every passing moment.

Kyo just laughs and points at her, then exclaims "all that just because I pulled her tail!? But you know, it's really soft and cute and cuddly-wuddly!"

The embarrassed yamabiko girl gets on her feet, runs away behind one of the flaps of the inner wall, then cries "**you stupid fat idiot idiot-head! Leave my tail alone!**"

A small vein pops on the muscled boy's forehead even though he still smiles, combs his spiky hair backward with his hand, then a glint escapes his right eye.

The teal haired girl gasps, then shakes her wobbly white eyed face and softly cries "don't you do it! Don't you dare do it!"

The vile muscled boy with the evil smile takes a deep breath, cups his hands around his mouth, and with all his might he shouts "I MADE OUT WITH A RAGING LESBIAAAAAN!"

"**I MADE OUT WITH A RAGING LESBIAAAAAAN! WAAAAAH!**" parrots Kyouko while flapping her ears rapidly, and adding,** "NO I DIDN'T!**"

Kyo takes another deep breath, the girl whimpers as she winds up her broom and threatens the boy with it, then a pair of legs clamp themselves around the boy's neck from behind, and now said boy finds himself being flipped in the air and slammed on to his back to the ground.

Orange, who has long orange hair that reaches her lower back and is tied to the end with a white ribbon, has orange eyes, and wears a yellow cap, a green shirt with yellow sleeves, and yellow short shorts, dusts her hands after dealing with Kyo, takes a baton out of her pocket after she stands, picks her hair and places it over her right shoulder, then bravely declares "only _I_ get to pick on Kyouko!"

"GOT TO HELL," screams the angry yamabiko from behind.

The boy springs up from the ground, grabs the orange girl by the back of the neck, then threateningly says "I'll teach you some manners, you little twerp!"

Before the girl complains, he spins in place once, swinging Orange around with him, then tosses her straight toward the temple and shouts "I WAS JUST HAVING A LITTLE FUN!"

"**I WAS JUST HAVING A LITTLE FUN!**" parrots Kyouko.

"See, even this little one agrees," shouts the boy with a grin.

"**NO I DON'T!**" quickly adds the teal haired girl.

Kyo wastes no time in his retaliation, and grabs the yamabiko girl's tail, then gently pets it while saying "man, this fur is really soft. You take really good care of yourself, don't you?"

Kyouko Kasodani is currently on the cold snow, smiling blissfully as the warm relaxation of her tail being petted fills her entire being, making her head all fuzzy and tingly, and turning her limbs into gelatin.

"Now that's a sickeningly cute reaction from just petting that tail," says the boy. "I wonder what would happen if I pet your ears too?"

The yamabiko's eyes open wide when she realizes he's not petting her anymore, her face slowly turns pink, then red, then tomato red, and finally, she kicks off the ground and reaches the temple in .36 seconds, then hides behind a large Buddha statue, peeks her head from its right, then hides again after failing to shout an insult.

Kyo holds his sides as he laughs and laughs at the shy little girl, then Orange, who now stands to his right, sighs and says "you're a real pain in the butt, you know that."

The boy chortles one last time, then casually says "she's just so much fun to tease."

The orange girl nods and says "that she is. You still have to pay for what you did to me."

The snow behind the boy crunches as a couple of feet make their way to him and the youkai girl, and confident that it's Medicine and Luna, he shrugs and casually says "hey, we're even, remember? You pulled a really nasty finisher on me from behind, after all."

"Ohh~! Then perhaps I should teach you about the mighty pinky twist finisher. _THEN_ you'd have reason to really retaliate," sweetly says Byakuren from behind.

Both Kyo and Orange gasp and turn to face Byakuren Hijiri and Shou Toramaru, whom stand firm with their hands on her hips; Shou holding her large spear with her right hand.

The Youkhrist has long wavy light-brown hair that fades to purple at the top, hazel eyes, and wears a white and black dress that's adorned by black laces crossing around the chest and white laces around her forearms, and also wears a black cape that's red underneath.

Bishamonten's Representative has short orangey-yellow hair with black stripes she adorns with an orange lotus-shaped ornament, yellow eyes, and wears a long-sleeved burgundy-orange-white dress with a tiger-stripe band around the waist, and has a white cloth circle around her back.

Behind them are Luna and Medicine, and before the temple girls say it, the silver haired girl irritably says "Kyo, stop picking on Kyouko every time we come here!"

The boy merely smiles contently, and then bluntly says "but it's just so much fun teasing that girl. Just look at her shaking behind that statue! It's PRICELESS I tell you!"

Byakuren walks over to Kyo, smiles and bends her legs just slightly, taps the back of his head with a light karate-chop, and now the boy is scrunched up into a ball on the snow, holding his head as a steaming red bump swells up to the size of a basketball.

Shou lifts a finger in the air and opens her mouth, then a washtub knocks her to the ground, where a fairy with long red hair, petal-shaped wings, and dressed in a burgundy and white rag jumps on her and lovingly rubs her cheeks on the tiger youkai's.

The gradient haired woman sighs at the sight, then turns to the boy and says "Shou's right, Kaizo. If you keep picking on that girl like that, you'll eventually end up fighting."

"But Shou didn't say a thing," comments Medicine in the background.

Ignoring her, Byakuren helps the boy on to his feet, and asks "and to what do we owe this visit today? Surely you didn't just come over to traumatize Kyouko?"

Luna walks in front of Byakuren and pulls out several white envelopes from her pocket, and with a shy face she says "Kyo was supposed to give you these; the invitations to our wedding."

"Oh my," happily exclaims the woman as she accepts the invitations, then tilts her head left while cutely asking "does this mean you have a date?"

Kyo joins his fiancé's side, and looking as hurt as her, they both shake their heads, then the boy says "no, not yet. We still want to wait for Ail to come back."

The Youkhrist's face turns sad when reminded of Ail, and then she softly says "I wonder when he will return?"

Almost a minute of silence passes by, Shou recovers herself and joins them in their silence, then Medicine clears her throat and says "jeez, he's only gone for a while, not dead you guys."

This seems to ignite the boy's spirit, and with a newly formed smile on his face, he cheerfully says "hey, Medi's right! He'll be back before we know it! Now then, about those invites."

"Right. Patchouli and Alice gave us a bit of a hand," begins the silver haired girl, "and once we have an actual date, these things will let you know immediately."

Kyo grins similarly as Marisa would, and says "it's going to be pretty casual, so don't fret about dresses and stuff."

Byakuren, Shou and Orange chuckle and smile at the happy trio, then the orange girl grins mischievously, and says "so~ Medicine is truly your daughter, and you are marrying because of her, huh? Kyo, you perverted human, you."

The boy knows where this is going, so he rushes straight toward Kyouko, whom happily screams "**Medicine is actually Kyo's and Luna's daughter!? That's AMAZING NEWS!**" long before he can reach her.

His mission failed, the muscled boy, his woman, and the poisonous doll say "**oh crap**", and now they can see two crow tengu flying straight toward the temple with glinting cameras ready, and vicious drooling smiles.

* * *

At the same time, at the Netherworld, Rika has finally reached the top of the stairs, and is now facing Youmu Konpaku outside the closed gates to Hakugyokurou.

Suzaku perches on the wall that protects the ghostly shrine from intruders, and seems to be observing her master and her opponent with great interest.

Youmu has short silver hair, blue eyes, wears a dark green dress with white ghost symbols at the bottom of the skirt, has a large spirit that's her own size floating around her, and carries a long sword called "Roukanken", and a short sword called "Hakurouken".

While those girls face each other, Reimu and Tenshi grind their teeth while standing beside a very blissful, fresh-looking Yuyuko, who glistens with cleanliness and radiance, and behind them stands Marisa, chuckling happily at the girls' rage.

"Now, now, no need to be so upset," begins the ghostly princess with a sweet and whimsical smile. "She passed all her trials up until now. You should be happy for her~."

Reimu gestures her hands as though wanting to strangle the ghost princess while breathing fire and growling "rubbing your feet and massaging your back are NOT TRIALS!"

Tenshi trembles violently as she struggles with herself so as not to activate her Sword of Hisou, while shooting sparks from her eyes and growling "a sponge bath and hair wash! Y-y-you FIEND! She should be doing that for ME!"

The maiden and celestial quickly lock eye-sparks as they face each other, then the red and white furiously says "she's _MY_ maid! She should do that stuff for _me_, not _you_!"

The blue haired girl's face turns dark, then she says "she's my friend LONG before she was your maid. Do the math, Hakurei!"

Marisa places two mirrors in front of the girls, bouncing their sparks back at each other and making them scream with that stinging pain from the returned attacks, then casually says "oi, keep it down. Those two are about to start, da-ze."

Rika elegantly holds her sword with the hilt above her head and the blade facing downward while in front of her face, and with a smile she says "I guess the easy trials are over."

Youmu; who crosses her swords in front of herself in a defensive stance; sighs and slumps while looking miserable toward the angelic maid and says "sorry about that. Yuyuko-sama just took over the last-minute preparations for youy trials, and... Please forgive us."

The sweet maid giggles and smiles, though doesn't drop her guard at all, then says "forgive you? Are you kidding me? It's nice to have easy trials every once in a while, and I have to admit, I kind of enjoyed them."

"**Oh, COME ON!**" shout Tenshi and Reimu from the distance.

The half-ghost girl just stares quizzically at the maid, covers her mouth as she chuckles, then says "you sure are different from the last time we talked, teasing your mistress and that celestial like that."

Rika just winks, lifts her wings and bends her knees, Youmu grins confidently, prepares herself to attack, then says "right. Your _real_ trial begins now! No draws accepted this time! You either defeat me, or you go back home!"

The silver haired girl kicks dust from under her feet after she takes off before the maid can reply, and now said angelic girl prepares for the attack that's to come.

Youmu lifts her large sword as she gets closer to Rika, twirls when in range, then swings the large blade from below, making the maid yelp and scramble to block the attack.

The angelic girl jumps away, still keeping that confident smile on her face, and says "nice feint. Someone's been practicing plenty. Good. I've been practicing a few things as well."

The half ghost and her ghostly self look eager at the winged girl, then the girl confidently says "excellent! I'll feel even better after defeating you!"

Rika sheathes her sword, swiftly claps her hands twice and a pair of black fingerless gloves with white wings on the palms and yin-yang orbs on the back appear on her hands, then she smiles confidently while staring back at Youmu.

The silver haired girl frowns, thinks "_she's preparing something. I better stop her now,_" then takes off after the maid in hopes to stop whatever she's doing.

The angelic girl grins, throws a high kick before her opponent is in range, confusing the silver haired girl, who sees an opening after that failed attack and goes for it with Hakurouken (short sword) ready.

She swings her blade and gulps when she realize she missed, though is not sure how, and remains unaware of Rika, who is spinning like a ballerina, with her right leg raised high to her right.

Before she can move again, Youmu is struck at the back of her head with a surprisingly solid calf, which sends her to the air against her will after a powerful rebound, and soon after she's being kicked all over her body as Rika keeps her airborne with her relentless kicks.

With her family sword charged with energy, the maid unsheathes and swings her blade, but this gives the half ghost girl the chance to place her Roukanken in the way of the blade of light, block, and rapidly declare "Human Sign, Slash of Present!"

Not even Youmu herself know how exactly she does it, but she manages to take a step toward Rika while in mid-air, and swings her sword right on the mark, sending the shrine maid flying five feet backward.

She winged girl bounces once on the ground, flips backward, lands on her feet, sheathes her sword, then takes off after her silver haired opponent, while declaring "Hikari, Byakuya Senmetsuken!"

She activates her Soraogan limit as she runs to Youmu, activates her Quicksilver when next to the girl, said half ghost swings her blade, but the six-winged girl has swung her sword already, and has left several bright beams of light all around her opponent.

Youmu only has time to scream "DARN IT AAAAALLLL," before shockwaves fly out of those beams straight to her, and although she is able to block those in front of her, she's caught by those beams and waves that fly from the sides and behind.

Rika jumps a few feet back and deactivates her Quicksilver as she cheers, all while poor Youmu lies on her back with an annoyed look on her face, while her ghost half lies to her right, curled up as though in shame.

The young swordswoman narrows her eyes, making herself look unamused, and mumbles "underestimate at your own peril."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Myouren Temple, Ail jumps away from a massive pink fist that misses him and destroys the beautiful bed of flowers behind him.

He quickly pushes himself up and runs to avoid a shower of red arrowhead bullets, followed by pink orbs that leave small craters on the ground.

He looks toward his attackers, raises a large blue barrier, and then shouts "just say something already! Why are you guys trying to kill me!?"

The boy kicks off the ground to avoid another pink fist, and flies on to the wall, from where he stares at his attackers and prepares a counter attack.

Ichirin Kumoi, a girl with purple wavy hair she covers with a dark-blue hood, dark purple eyes, who wears a white dress with dark-blue borders at the bottom, threateningly points at the dense boy, and says "you're not getting away this time! I'll make you pay for what you did to Byakuren, Nue, and the karakasa, you murderous pervert!"

On her left hand she holds a golden ring that seems to be holding Unzan, a pink nyuudou that looks like a bald old man with a thick beard, who seems to be clenching his teeth at the hated boy.

"What do you mean?" asks Ail with a confused look on his face. "What happened to Lady Byakuren and Kogasa!?"

He jumps off the wall to avoid Unzan's fist again, rolls on the ground to avoid Kyouko's arrowheads, then jumps to avoid Ichirin's orbs and the nyuudou's eye beams.

As he rolls away to safety, the purple-haired girl snarls and says "just die, you disgusting bastard!"

Ail stops to look at the girl with a pathetic teary face, and sounding as though ready to cry, he asks "M-Miss Ichirin... Why are you talking to me like I'm some sort of plague? Wh-what did I do?"

A deafening boom causes a powerful shockwave that sends the boy flying straight toward the temple, causing the purple haired youkai girl to click her tongue and sigh with frustration.

"Kyouko, look at what you did now," exclaims Ichirin, frightening the yamabiko a little bit, then turning her gaze to the temple and shouting "NUE, MINAMITSU! STOP HIM! DON'T LET HIM NEAR HIJIRI AGAIN!"

"**DON'T LET IM NEAR HIJIRI AGAIN!**" parrots Kyouko in an attempt to fix her mistake.

The dense boy is unable to stop himself as he flies straight toward the second section of the temple grounds, where two girls with short black hair stand side by side, waiting eagerly for him.

The one on the right, Nue Houjuu, has cold red eyes, three red metallic wings on the right, three tail-like blue wings on the left, wears a short black dress with a red yin-yang tomoe imprinted on the side, and holds a black trident on her right hand, where the snake from before crawls from and wraps itself around the trident and the girl's forearm.

The one on the left, Minamitsu Murasa, has teal eyes, wears a white and teal sailor suit, complete with a silly white hat, and holds a massive anchor over her shoulder as if it merely weighted a few ounces.

She throws that anchor at the flying boy, and he instinctively wills himself to dive under it, and although his landing is rough because of that maneuver, he is saved from the anchor that turns a portion of the wall to splinters after it falls.

The boy doesn't need to look to know what happened, and gulps with fright while kneeling and looking into the murderous eyes of the two girls before him.

"_Crap, they're out for blood. I better block Murasa, or she'll drown me with my own spit! And Miss Nue is dangerous too, even with my barriers. Gah! Why are they after me? What did I do to make them so mad?_"

"Smart move, you depraved bastard," says Minamitsu in an unfriendly undertone as she waves her ladle in front of her own face, "putting a barrier against my powers was smart, but that won't save you, you lecherous bilge rat."

The boy breaks free from his mind when he realizes he's surrounded by five very dangerous youkai now, and to make matters worse, the four girls have spell cards ready on their hands, while the nyuudou winds a fist back.

"Please," begs the boy while looking at the nue's hateful eyes. "Can someone tell me what's going on!? Why do you girls want to kill me? What happened to you, to Byakuren and Kogasa?"

Nue's cold eyes suddenly soften, her gaze locks on Ail's pathetic look of confusion and fear, and in her own confusion she hoarsely whispers "wait. ...Wha?"

"Together now; today we avenge Lady Byakuren and Kogasa!" shouts Minamitsu, breaking Nue's sudden confusion, which return her eyes to that cold stare from before.

All spell cards glow bright yellow long before they are activated, and realizing what this means, the dense boy gasps, a new kind of fear invades his heart, and as he looks at Kyouko's teary eyes, he thinks "_They're aiming to destroy my spirit! What do I do? I don't know how to use a barrier strong enough to defend myself against that! _[_Stop being such a wuss and FIGHT BACK! Kill them all! You know you can!_]"

"Flood, Venus of the Bilge," hatefully declares Minamitsu.

"Divine Fist, Hell Thrust from the Heavenly Seas," declares Ichirin, causing herself and Unzan to glow bright yellow.

"**Mountain Echo, Yamabiko's Specialty Echo Demonstration,**" declares Kyouko, causing the ground to tremble with her voice.

"Grudge Bow, The Bow of Genzanmi Yorimasa", hoarsely whispers Nue, her eyes welled with tears of pain as she speaks.

All four spell cards activate at the very same time, Ail only has a split second to think of something, then the next second the spot where he stands becomes the center of a magical concentration that's meant to destroy souls.

The center of said concentration becomes a four point star that spins counterclockwise, stops, then explodes with such a magnitude, the walls protecting the temple ground are blown away along with the flowers; the temple itself sways, its foundation groaning as it fights to stabilize, then slowly, everything settles down.

On the ground, the girls all lie unconscious on their backs, unaware of the disappearing barrier bits in front of each, Unzan is the size of a pea, and hides under Ichirin's neck while he recovers, and high above them, the dense one covers his face with his forearms.

He slowly uncovers his fleshy protection, opens his eyes, studies the scene below him with great interest, then slowly descends to the left of the massive crater left behind by the blast.

After landing, Ail looks around, sighs at the sight of all those dead flowers and the destroyed wall, resumes his march toward the temple, and casually says "that's what happens when you aim at each other."

Nue shivers as she barely opens her right eye and weakly looks around until she spots the boy, but feeling so weak, she sighs quietly and closes them again.

"Man, I barely put those barriers up in time. Phew, who knew I had it in me."

The undefined girl twitches after hearing the boy speak those words, her snake crawls over to her face, tweets like a bird, then both it and the girl settle down to rest.

Ail continues toward the shrine, unchallenged yet unsettled due to the eerie silence that's surrounding him now.

The building itself is giving a very cold feeling, as if all the holy essence has been sucked form it, and thus has become a haven for vile demons, yet regardless of this feeling, he continues on.

"It's so quiet and empty," says the boy to himself, sounding calm, hiding the cold sensation on his rapid-beating heart.

He opens the door to the dark temple's insides, then softly calls "he-hello? Byakuren? I-it's me, Ail," not sure what will happen if he meets with the woman.

He explores the dark room with his eyes, takes two steps into the building, then gasps with shock and surprise as his eyes open wider.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the Netherworld, Reimu, Tenshi and Marisa are congratulating Rika with pats on the wings and shoulders, while Youmu opens the gate to Hakugyokurou with a slightly humiliated look on her face.

"Ah-ah-ah~ don't open that gate just yet, Youmu~" sweetly chirps Yuyuko.

"Hey, what gives? Rika beat your girl fair and square," angrily barks Reimu.

The ghost princess lifts a single finger while keeping her seemingly-whimsical eyes on the girls, and with just that, she manages to quite all protests as she floats toward Rika.

"There's just one more trial," happily says the bouncy woman, and reaching the angelic maid, she wraps an arm around her shoulders, and whispers right into her ears while smiling ever so cheerfully.

Rika's wings stretch as she activates her Soraogan Mode again, twists her neck as she turns a _very _mischievous, perky and bright smile toward Youmu; whom understandably enough gulps at the sight; then calls "Suzaku dear, come here for a moment, please."

The obedient familiar flies from the wall to her master's shoulder; from which Yuyuko backs away from; and with a doubtful look in her eyes she suspiciously asks "_Rika-sama, what are you going to do?_"

The maid giggles as she pulls the bird's face closer, hunches up as if trying to be as secretive as possible, then the vermilion bird squawks loudly as she becomes a red cape that covers the maid's back.

Everyone stares with interest at this turn of events, but none are more interested than Youmu, who stares with a bit of worry as the maid holds her stomach and double over, as though in pain.

"R-Rika? Are you alright? What's happening to you?" asks the gardener, unaware of her mistress' and guests' chuckles on the background.

The angelic maid wraps her wings around herself, and then hoarsely says "Y-Youmu-san. I... I don't feel too well. Urk. I feel like... like..."

The silver haired girl rushes over to the convulsing maid, and worriedly shouts "Rika, what's the matter? Yuyu-sama, I think she's being possessed!"

"Possessed you say?" whispers Rika in a dark tone.

She shivers as she slowly turns around, reveals a pair of messy wings, then she straightens up, opens her ruffled wings, lifts her arms above her head, and fire roars when her cape ignites.

Rika's face is pale, her left eye is looking to the right, while her right one is looking up, her teeth are jagged, a large long red tongue hangs from the corner of her mouth, and she snarls like a beast before screaming an echoed "NOT POSSESSED! GHOOOOOOOOOSSSSST!"

Youmu's face and ghost half turn blue, her clothes colors bleach along with her skin, her lips wriggle as she stiffens in place, tears well up under her now unhinged and terrorized eyes, then she takes off running and screaming while shooting random danmaku behind herself.

She tackles the mansion's outer gates open as she cries herself inside, then continues her way to the back of the mansion, screaming her lungs out and calling out for help from Yuyuko.

The ghostly Rika frowns as she watches the poor gardener run away like a frightened child, then sadly says "I think we overdid it, Suzu-chan."

Behind her, Tenshi, Reimu and Marisa are laughing their lungs off, all trying to speak between breaths, talking about Youmu's reaction, while Yuyuko merely giggles playfully.

The angelic ghost maid turns around with that jagged-toothed frown, the large red tongue still hanging, that fire still roaring, places her hands on her hips, and in a tone of disappointment, she says an echoed "hey! That's not very nice! She's really scared!"

The girls stop laughing, huddle together, scream like frightened children, then run into the mansion, following the half-ghost's trail.

Rika sighs, pulls off the fake mouth by pulling on the red tongue, Suzaku stops the fireworks, and after an inevitable chuckle, the sweet maid asks "wow, was I really that convincing?"

Yuyuko floats over to her, pats the maid's shoulder, and says "you would make a most wonderful ghost, my dear. Now come, you passed all your trials, so now you get to meet you old new friend."

The vermilion bird has taken her true form and perches on the girl's shoulder once again, and now shares her master's look of confusion, along with a raised brow, and then the ghostly princess merely giggles as she pushes the girl toward the mansion's tackled gates.

"Lady Yuyuko, who is this person I am going to meet?"

"Lykamei~ you have a guest that's eager to see you~", sings the pink haired ghost in the sweetest of tones, ignoring her guest's question.

She turns around to face Rika, giggles, then says "she'll be out in a minute, so you just wait here while I go get Youmu and the others back. Oh, and she's been asking about a special item this whole time. I wonder if you know anything about that."

After a sweet coo and a wave of her fingers, Yuyuko floats away toward the back of the ghostly mansion to go look for the cowardly girls, and shortly after she's out of earshot, Rika feels a familiar essence getting closer to her.

After a few seconds, a girl from inside the shrine sweetly calls "what was that Miss Yuyuko? I have a guest?"

* * *

Rika smiles sweetly when the girl from the mansion finally comes out into view, but then her eyes fill with some sort of longing, as if she knows this ghostly girl.

Lykamei looks like a little girl with long white hair that's smooth on the top and wavy at the tips she adorns with a maid's headdress, has dark yellow eyes, and she wears a cute little purple shirt with a maid's apron that covers down to her grey ghostly tail.

Her skin is pale, though a bit dark, her eyes show wisdom hiding behind innocence, and her mousy voice sounds pained yet sweet as she shyly asks "oh, a g-guest. Um, m-my name is Lykamei. Er, please come inside Miss..."

The little ghost's eyes become blank as she narrows them while looking at Rika and Suzaku, then they suddenly turn back to normal as she casually asks "say, do I know you?"

Tears start forming under the angelic maid's eyes as her mind makes a comparison to Kali, whose only difference is the wavy hair, the red eyes, and that voice.

The little girl gasps and quickly floats toward the guest, and nervously asks "Miss, what's the matter!? Are you hurt!? Can I hel-KYAH!"

The little ghost girl yelps when Rika drops on her knees and embraces her, but quickly relaxes after her would-be captor sobs out loud and cries "it's you! You're her! *Sob* Kali, I'm so sorry! I wasn't strong enough to save you!"

The shy little ghost hesitantly pats the maid on the head twice, then says "um, th-there, um, Miss. Calm down. I don't even know who Kali is, though her name does sound kinda familiar."

She stares at the sobbing angel and the red bird rubbing her cheeks against her master's face, and then asks "wait, Kali is a girl, right?"

Rika nods, and after a heartfelt sniffle, she giggles as she rubs Suzaku's cheeks with her hand and says "yes. Yes, Kali is a girl. But I thought I lost her. I thought she told me shadows didn't have souls, so why-"

"The Yama brought her here; personally even," begins Yuyuko from the side, cutting the angelic girl's words off. "This little one was wandering around without a goal, and was sure to turn into nothing, but she's living with us now."

From behind the ghost princess, Reimu and Marisa open their eyes wide and express their surprise with a dual "**whoa,**" then the shrine maiden adds "it's the spitting image of Kali. But I don't understand."

"Neither do I, My Lady. I mean, when did I activate my blood limit?"

The girls look at the maid and smile, Youmu, who still looks a bit shaken, sighs and says "and she even fell asleep. I haven't seen her do that since she got here," then Tenshi clicks her tongue and mutters "that should be me there."

Lykamei has both hands under her head as she rests it on Rika's thigh, and said maid embraces the ghostly shadow girl with her wings, as though wanting to protect her, making the little ghost girl coo when those soft feathers touch her cheeks.

Yuyuko giggles at this, and then softly says "I'm sure you have a lot of catching up to do, so please take her home with you for a few days. Youmu will pick her up when it's time."

The angelic girl wants to say thanks, but gasps when she remembers something, takes her Saboten Stock out of her pocket, presses the button and sinks her hand inside its glowing hole, and then pulls out the bronze plates and circles necklace that belonged to Kali.

She pockets the little cube once more, then gently places the necklace around the ghost's neck, while softly saying "before she passed on, she asked me to take care of this. Maybe she knew we would meet again. I'm so," she sniffles, "glad."

As soon as she lets go of the necklace, Suzaku tweets when the item starts to glow faintly yellow, the large plates shrink, turning into a thin necklace, the center of the thin strap takes the shape of a pair of angel wings, and then glowing stops.

Rika's eyes water again a she looks at the new golden necklace with her family symbol on it, smiles sweetly, then says "thank you Miss Yuyuko. I really appreciate you taking in this girl and caring for her."

Lykamei moans as she pulls herself off from the angel girl's lap, smacks her lips, then asks "where am I?"

She sees Tenshi, Reimu and Marisa staring at her with great interest, yelps and hides behind the angel's wings, then nervously says "w-w-welcome t-to Hakugyokurou. U-um, p-please be kind to me and don't eat me."

Yuyuko giggles and floats closer to Lykamei and the maid as she opens her fan to cover her mouth with it, then says "child, please be on your best behavior. You'll be staying with these people at their shrine for a few days, do you understand?"

The little girl glances upward and trembles, nods once as she gently squeezes Rika's wing as if for protection, then the ghostly princess squeals and flies through the maid, grabs the little girl, squeezes her in a hug, and blood start rolling down her ghostly nose while she happily coos and hugs the little one.

Before the obvious comments are made, Youmu sighs irritably, and with a disgusted face she says "I don't know how she's bleeding either, but it's been happening a lot since that girl came here."

Reimu, Tenshi, Marisa, Rika and Suzaku all share a silent stare in their disbelief of this situation, all while Yuyuko coos, squeals and giggles while holding the complaining ghost in her arms.

* * *

"Lady Byakuren?" whispers Ail as he slowly enters the prayer room.

He's almost to tears as he kneels and crawls on the floor, yet steeling himself so as not to sound too disturbed, he asks "Miss Byakuren, wh-what happened to you? ...Why aren't you talking to me?"

Byakuren Hijiri, the once proud and beautiful head of the Myouren Temple is now a skeletal shell of her former shell.

Her pale skin clings to her bones, wrinkles invade her once beautiful face, black rings surround her eyes, her hair looks dry and unkempt and most has turned grayish, and she wears a dirty white robe that seems was put on her by force.

She is curled up into a ball on a corner of the room, hugging her knees tightly as she throws her unhinged eyes around the floor, seemingly unaware of Ail's presence, yet the closer he gets to her, the harder she shivers.

Noticing her state, the boy wisely crawls slowly toward her, whispering calming words as he tries to reach his friend.

He is hurt by her current state and wants nothing more than to help her, to reach her and help her stand, heal her if he can, but that is when he notices what lies on a pedestal on the statue above her.

It's now his turn to have unhinged eyes and pale skin as he gazes, mouth agape, at the broken dark eggplant colored umbrella that is split in two on that pedestal in front of a large Buddha statue.

He forgets what he was doing and foolishly stands up, his legs shake as something in his mind plays images of himself breaking that umbrella with his knee in front of a crying heterochromiac girl, and then he punches himself on the right temple.

He holds his pained head as he stumbles closer to Byakuren, making her flinch and whimper, then starts to cry and says "no! Kogasa! I would have never done that! Why? Why did I do that? Kogasa!"

His shout frightens the shivering woman on the floor, and before he can recompose himself, the frightened woman cries "no! Please, don't! Ail no, stop! Stop it! **Stop it! **G-get away! SHOU, SAVE ME! SHOOOOOOUUUUUU!"

She starts to cry, causing the boy to break free from his mind and realize his foolish mistake, and lifting his hands defensively, he slowly backs away, swallows the last of his tears down, and softly says "alright. It's alright. I'll go away."

He throws himself away from Byakuren and lands flat on his back on the floor, and watches with horror as a feral-faced Shou thrusts her giant spear from the right, destroying the seats and ornaments on the left side of the room.

She turns that disfigured beastly face toward the boy and furiously roars "**HOW DARE YOU COME HERE? HOW DARE YOU, YOU LECHEROUS WRETCH! I WILL TAKE YOU LIFE, AIL! NOBODY WILL CHANGE MY MIND THIS TIME!**"

She pulls her crystal pagoda out of her pocket and starts shooting lasers and orbs that literally snake their way to the boy, confusing him with their erratic movements, and shouts "you lecherous backstabber from hell. It wasn't enough for you to break Hijiri, _NO_; you had to use her for your sick pleasure! SHE WAS YOUR FRIEND!"

He manages to back-flip at the very last second to avoid the danmaku, and uses the momentum from the explosion to make his way toward the exit, but that's when the mouse youkai strikes him with her black dowsing rods, forcing him face-down on the floor and trapping him there.

Nazrin has short grey hair, red eyes, large grey mouse ears on top of her head, a leathery mouse tail with a yellow basket hanging from the tip, and wears a brownish-black dress with long pink sleeves, a light-grey capelet on her shoulders, a crystal pendulum around her neck, and by the look on her face drooling, she's eager to devour the boy before her.

She wastes no time in opening her mouth and throwing herself at the boy's back to take a bite, but doing so loosens her grip, allowing the dense one to roll away to safety, but as soon as he stops, he has to flip back to avoid getting impaled by Shou's giant lance.

He rolls backward until his back hits the wall, uses it to balance himself as he stands, and nervously screams "are you two out of your minds? Jeez, what is _wrong_ with you guys? I would never do anything to harm Lady Byakuren! Why the hell are you trying to ki-", but that's when those fake memories hit him again.

He can see himself holding Kogasa's eggplant colored umbrella, wrapping its large tongue around its own body, and lifting it to the air.

The karakasa youkai, whom has short turquoise hair, a right turquoise eye, a left red eye, and wears a blue-green vest with long white sleeves, a light-blue skirt, and wooden sandals, cries and begs the boy to stop.

Ail feels himself smiling at the girl, lowering the umbrella, and then quickly pushing the thing against his knee, and now he's back in reality, holding his head while kneeling on the floor, crying like a hurt child.

"But I wouldn't!" He sobs, then yells "Kogasa! I didn't!" He sniffles, "...I liked her, so _why _would I hurt her like that?"

Nazrin hesitates on her next attack as she stares at the pathetic figure of the boy before her, but Shou strikes him with the bladed side of her spear, sending him flying to the right of the large room with a bloody gash on his ribs, then follows her attack with many yellow lasers from her pagoda.

Ail crashes against the remaining seats, making horrible noises as the lasers pierce through his skin, leaving horrible burn marks on him and causing him great pain, adding those screams of pain of his to the mess of loud noises.

As the boy screams in pain from the burning lasers, the tiger youkai grabs the mouse youkai by the shoulder and sternly says "remember how that lecherous backstabber got Byakuren, Kogasa _AND_ Nue! Don't let him fool you too, Naz!"

Debris shifts as Ail groans while he sits up, and by some miraculous strength he manages to stand on his shaky legs, then growls "I'm sorry Miss Shou and Miss Nazrin, but I can't remember consciously doing anything that vile my friends. I would never do that. The _real_ me wouldn't. [_Just shoot them now and end this!_] So I will say this once. Let me go now, and I'll never come back here, or attack me again and I'll retaliate."

"I don't care about the no-killing rule anymore," angrily mutters the tiger youkai under her breath. "I am taking his tainted life!"

She holds her pagoda high above her head, throws her spear at the boy, then follows up by declaring "Light Sign, Aura of Justice!", and summons massive blue laser beams and yellow petal-shaped bullets to rain down on said boy.

Ail's left eye twitches, he moves his head slightly right, avoiding the giant spear, raises a barrier to protect himself from the yellow bullet above and below him, then clenches his teeth, says "you asked for this, Miss Toramaru," and shoots several focused orange bullets at the tiger youkai.

"MASTER," shouts the mouse youkai before she tackles the tiger girl out of the way of the merciless blasts.

The explosions cause a confusion of screams and dust, but at least Shou's spell card has been cancelled, and now the dense boy thinks it is the best moment to escape.

"Nazrin," screams the tiger youkai before breaking down to sob.

Ail gulps, turns around and sees the damage he caused the grey haired girl.

The back of her shirt has been burned off, and her skin is as black as the laser spots on the boy's, meaning he used too much power in his attack.

He should be glad those two are out of his way, but being who he is he sighs and heads on over to help the girls, but that's when he discovers Byakuren standing right behind him with a deathly look on her face.

She lifts her wrinkled bony hand at him, snarls, then speaks in a dangerous undertone. "You. You were my dearest of friends. You betrayed and destroyed me when you forced yourself on me like that. You killed Kogasa in front of my very eyes. You ripped Nue's throat when my body rejected you, out of some sick sense of revenge over something nobody could control!"

She points at the ruined figure of Nazrin, whom has lost a great portion of the back of her clothes, has her back completely burned, and barely breathes on Shou's arms, then returns her full attention to the boy.

"I will not forgive you! I CAN'T," begins the woman as she takes a few steps toward the boy, "you won't take another of my girls away!"

Her skin tightens as her body starts to fill itself up with magic again, her hair recovers its beautiful color and sheen, her eyes recover their focus and life, then she pulls her magical blue scrolls from the pocket of the dirty robe, snarls at the boy, then furiously says "I will break my own rules today; but only today! Anilan Inmodo Leuch, you will die by _my_ hand!"

* * *

The woman throws a punch at the boy's chest that sends him flying though the temple's ceiling wall.

Ail manages to stop himself outside in mid-air, and scrunches himself up into a ball to rub his sore and aching chest, but nursing his bruises will have to wait.

Byakuren is already behind him and throwing another deadly punch at his spine.

The boy manages to raise a physical barrier, but the woman's punch breaks through and connects, however the impact is lessened, and the dense one rapidly loops over the angry saint.

He traps her inside a blue barrier, kicks the oval barrier to the ground, then shouts "I'm _not_ doing this, Byakuren! [_I'm looking forward to our fifth-to-tenth round, sweet cheeks!_] I'm your friend, not you-"

A thought suddenly hits him and his body becomes stiff and almost impossible to move.

He starts to see himself beating the gradient haired woman repeatedly with his own hands, all while smiling with some sick satisfaction before ripping her clothes off and throwing them away.

She screams and cries out to him, but he only smiles back, seemingly ignoring her and getting a kick out of the sick scene before him.

He stops those thoughts and finds himself feeling ice cold while hugging himself in the air, and as he slowly descends, looking blankly to the distance, he whispers to himself "who the _hell_ am I?"

"**HE'S FALLING DOWN! GET HIM,**" shouts Kyouko from the near left, and now two set of footsteps rush toward him, but Ail doesn't care anymore.

His eyes suddenly bulge with surprise and fright when someone whooshes closer, then he feels Byakuren's fingers wrapping dangerously tight around his neck while saying "don't any of you dare! He's too powerful and sneaky! Stay away while I deal with this one!"

Ail looks to the ground and sees his oval barrier prison is still there, but there's a perfect circle opening on its right side, then he moves his eyes to meet with the woman's and whispers "this is why I never wanted to fight you when you were serious."

Byakuren sinks her fingers deeper into the skin of his neck, her eyes glow reddish with hatred, and then she mutters under her breath "it's too late for that!"

She dives to the ground and forces him to crash first, sinking his body into the dirt and making sure to make as much internal damage as her magic can cause him, then lifts him up as she starts to breathe through her teeth, seeping hatred from her pores as she stares at him, repeatedly punches his face, then suddenly stops.

"I trusted you with my life! I confided many things to you, shared happiness and sorrow! Ail; you were like a dear little brother, maybe even a son to me! I couldn't make you join religion, my beliefs, but I _didn't care!_"

Tears start to flow from her eyes at a rapid rate, staining her face and her clothes as she slowly lifts the boy up to the air, then punches him on the stomach to disable his movements, then throws him against the solid wall of the temple building and starts to cry as she walks to him.

"You came here one day, demanding me to love you; to bare you the child that fate denied! Ail, you knew my beliefs, my rules! But no, you took advantage of my love for you! You lured me into a trap, sealed my powers with that **_damned_** charm; Buddha forgive my words!"

Byakuren opens her scroll, and without speaking a word, a spell card activates.

Ail immediately recognizes the "Nikou Hijiri's Air Scroll" spell the woman silently activates and performs, he knows he can block and dodge this easily, but he just sobs in a manner that feels like a cough, and merely lowers his head and waits for the barrage of spirit-diminishing bullets to hit.

The woman holds the attack, takes a deep breath to calm her nerves as she lands in front of him, then says "you weren't satisfied after that, oh no! You had to beat me up! What did I ever do to you to deserve such treatment!? I begged, and begged, and begged, but you kept going! Then Kogasa tried to help, and you just break her in half!"

She sends a single line of those blue bullets crashing on to the boy's chest, and screams "and then you trick Nue into lowering her guard and you damaged her like she was some enemy! Ail, she trusted you too! Why did you betray us; because fate dealt you a dirty hand? IT WAS YOUR OWN FAULT, YOU IDIOT!"

Ail's cracking breath makes his pain known as he looks up at the crying woman before him, and even he gasps with fright at the sight of the ten remaining lines of bullets heading toward him, but he clenches his eyes shut and turns his face away while he awaits his inevitable demise instead of running away.

After some time passes and nothing happens, the boy hesitantly opens his eyes again to meet the first orb of blue light a mere inch away from his face, then he turns his sight toward the loud sobs.

Byakuren drops on her knees and covers her eyes with her left hand as she cries and sobs uncontrollably, her spell cancels on its own, then she cries "I can't do it! Hic-hic; I can't kill him!" She sobs and adds, "Ail, you did such terrible things, but you were so special to me. You still are. My friend, what happened to you? Why did you change so much?"

The boy can't help but cry along with the Youkhrist, lets himself stumble away from the wall, then cries "I don't know." He sniffles long and loudly before crying "I don't even know who I am anymore."

The woman's eyes flicker, she lets her head drop, then she softly says "just go. Leave this place, and I beg you, please, don't you ever return."

A cold sting; that is what he feels when those words reach him. He has been banished from the Myouren temple due to actions committed by himself, though he is still confused by the whole thing, even though he knows it's his own fault.

Regardless, he gulps down his sorrow, nods twice, then stands up and walks away from the temple, but when he's to the woman's right, he whispers "none of this makes sense to me, but I wish none of it had ever happened ...onee-chan."

Byakuren lifts her tear-stained face and scowls at him; her eyes surrounded by those dark rings again; and in a sudden burst of pure hatred, she furiously swings her arms around while roaring "**GET OUT! JUST GET OUT OF HERE! DIE UNDER REIMU'S CHARMS FOR ALL I CARE! JUST DISAPPEAR FROM OUR LIFE!**"

Ail continued to move after saying his piece, doesn't stop when Byakuren screams hers, and merely keeps moving with his head hanging low in shame as he makes his way to the Temple's exit.

He walks past Minamitsu, who snarls at him so as not to smash his head in with her rustiest anchor.

He walks between Ichirin, Unzan and Kyouko, and the yamabiko merely moves away from the boy, while Ichirin mutters "damned destroyer of lives."

He stops for a moment to look back at the temple, and sees Shou holding Nazrin by the arms, helping her keep on her feet as the weakened youkai is barely able to lift her head.

Ail turns around again, looks at his hands and sees them stained in blood, gasps and blinks; the blood is gone, then tears start to well under his eyes as he thinks "_so I really am a monster? I did all this because of a child; my child? Me? _[_FATE DENIED REIMU HER HAPPINESS! IF SHE CAN'T BE HAPPY, NOBODY ELSE CAN!_] _I don't understand, and yet it is clear I caused a lot of grief._"

He looks around the ruined temple grounds, the fallen wall, the destroyed flowerbeds, then sighs to avoid sobbing again, and thinks "_I am a monster. I am the villain of this world! And here I thought I was a hero. How pathetic. _[_SHE CRIED FOR WEEKS, SULKED FOR **MONTHS!** NOBODY CAME TO COMFORT HER! THEY WERE DISGUSTED BY HER CHOICE TO MARRY **ME! **DAMNED HYPOCRITES!_]_ Maybe I should stay put in the village._"

The boy can hear Byakuren crying behind him, and every moment that passes makes her sobs louder, and each and every time he hears her voice so hurt, his heart punishes him with a cold stinging needle.

He has had enough, covers his ears to block out the woman's crying voice, moves his foot forward, but then sees those silly red shoes over black stockings he knows well.

Ail looks up at Nue's confused face, notices the doubt in her eyes, then his eyes are met with something else that seems to shine red on her neck.

Slowly, he moves his hand toward her neck, paying no mind to the fear rising in her eyes, and when his finger touches the skin of her throat, he grunts and coughs up blood after a disturbing sound of breaking skin echoes around him.

Byakuren screams, calls for him, but he can barely hear her.

The undefined girl has her trident thrust through his chest, and on its prongs his spirit remains stuck, forced right out of his body.

Nue sobs and hoarsely whispers "not again. Not this time."

Anilan has only a few seconds before being completely detached from his body, and with a quick flick of the wrist and a good grip, he removes a red and white charm that was stuck under the skin of the youkai's neck.

The black-haired girl gasps, her voice returns to her, and just as Ail's life flickers out of his eyes, and his spirit drifts away from her trident, she whispers "what? But..."

Her eyes water, her lips shiver, then she screams "NO! I MADE A MISTAKE! AIL, I'M SORRY! COME BAAAAAACK!"

The world freezes, everything turns grey, a white light consumes all, and all that is left is a single white feather floating in nothingness, and three mischievous giggles that fade after a few seconds.

* * *

Ail wakes up face-down on the grass-like floor next to his bed of red flowers with a loud and desperate gasp for air, and the first thing he does after kneeling up at once is touch his chest to check for any holes on it.

He sighs with relief after he finds he is still whole, then gasps and turns around by hopping on his knees after a giggle from behind.

Byakuren, Kogasa and Nue stand behind him, while Shou and Nazrin stand behind the former, with stern and cold looks on their faces, as though acting like guards.

"Surprised, aren't you?" asks the Youkhrist in her usual sweet tone of voice.

"L-Lady Byakuren... M-Miss Nue... Kogasa," whispers the boy with trembling lips.

He crawls toward the girls and prostrates himself in front of them, then starts to cry "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry! I swear, I don't know why I did those things to you! I swear, I don't even remember-"

The karakasa places a finger on his lips to shut him up, smiles, then says "if it's of any consolation for you, I didn't feel a thing. It was _that_ quick."

"I'm the one who should be apologizing," says the undefined youkai as she looks away to hide her shame. "If I hadn't been so scared, you could have removed that thing, proven to me you weren't evil, and be back home with the _real_ us."

The dense boy raises an eyebrow, gulps that last bit of sorrowful feelings in his chest, then says "b-but I still did such horrible things. Even if it is fake, it-"

"It wasn't you, silly little brother!"

Byakuren's words seem to stump the boy, and before he recovers, she continues "Ail, don't you remember? This world is what would have been if Reimu and you would have paired up by the force of a spell. _THIS_ is the world you _almost_ created when you tampered with time."

The boy's eyes widen with the remembrance of that recent blunder of his, and with this knowledge present in his mind, the saintly woman continues "that's right. Ail, if you had succeeded in destroying the fabric of time, like you almost did, you would have destroyed us all, not just yourself and Reimu. And yes, even your going insane would have been your life. _YOU_ would have been the worst of all villainous scum in Gensokyo."

The dense one gulps and nods as the information shared resurfaces to his mind, but then another question takes the front of his thoughts, and asks "Hijiri? In that world you mentioned I was special to you. Like a little brother, or a son. I..."

Tears start to roll down his eyes as he looks at the gradient haired woman, and says "I don't care if it was an evil me! Lady Byakuren, onee-chan, I am sorry for what I did to you! It was disgraceful; a horrible thing to do to a special friend like you! And you too, Miss Kogasa and Miss Nue! I am so sorry for what I did to you!"

Byakuren grabs the boy by his cheeks, makes him stand in a gentle, yet strong manner, and while keeping his eyes locked on hers, she says "don't you dare think for a moment that you are evil, Ail! Everyone has a dark side, as well as a side of light! Keeping them in balance is what you, _the real you,_ does best, just like Reimu."

She suddenly disappears, leaving Kogasa and Nue in front of the boy, then the karakasa says "Ail, something is interfering! Your next goal is now hidden. Be careful! We all feel there's something tampering with this world. They might try to harm you."

She disappears as suddenly as the saintly woman, then the undefined one hurriedly says "Ail, don't give in! You are a very nice person, and whatever happens in here stays here! You are _you_ Ail! Don't forget that!"

She disappears as well, quickly followed by the two guardians, but as soon as they are all out of the room, there is a strong bang, a misty blue cloud spreads on the spot where Shou and Nazrin where, then Byakuren walks out of it, wearing a godly white dress with silk sashes clinging on a ring she has on her middle fingers, which holds the end of her sleeves in place.

Ail tries to mutter something, but she quickly moves toward him, embraces him strongly, then softly says "don't let him consume you, Ail. You are pure, wise and strong. Don't forget, and use it to your heart's content."

"Wh-wait, wait! Lady Byakuren!"

The boy's shouts are wasted on an empty room that suddenly turns completely white, and before he loses his consciousness, he hears himself speaking to his right.

"I'm real sick of you, kid. I didn't want to do this, but you give me no other choice. Come on Ail, let's go. Let me show you the wonders of your new life!"

* * *

That wintery evening, at the Hakurei Shrine, Reimu moans contently while waving her feet inside her bathtub, while Rika gently rubs her bare back with a silky soft sponge.

Hearts fly out of the shrine maiden's head, her cheeks are bright red, her wriggled lips and distant eyes reveal the bliss she is feeling, and after a long sigh, she says "man, this is great. Thank you for washing my back for me, Rika dear."

The angelic maid giggles contently, stealthily activates her Soraogan Blood Limit, and sweetly says "my pleasure, My Lady. Besides that, you know I would _never_ ignore an order from you."

The angelic girl slowly moves her wings toward her mistress, carefully positions them to her sides, slowly places her feathers on the girl's neck, and Reimu Hakurei immediately moans and melts after the silky-soft feathers touch her skin.

Rika giggles mischievously, then happily says "that was an interesting reaction."

The shrine maiden suddenly rises from the water, splashing it everywhere and getting her maid all wet, then loudly calls "hey, Lykamei, the water is getting cold. Give it a little more heat!"

The angelic maid deactivates her blood limit while shaking the water off her hands, face, wings and chest, then sweetly says "Lykamei~, sweetie, could you please make the water a little hotter for Miss Reimu?"

"Hai~! I'll warm it up real good Miss Rika," immediately calls the eager ghost girl.

The maid chuckles, then casually says "see Miss Reimu? If you're a little sweeter, she'll respond."

The naked red and white merely groans and sinks her face in the warming water, then blows bubbles while speaking incoherently.

Just outside the bathroom's walls, on the cold snow, the little dark ghost blows on a bamboo pipe, helping a nice roaring fire come to life every time.

She stops blowing, dusts her hands, raises an eyebrow, then bluntly asks "say, don't you think it's weird that I, a ghost, am actually breathing oxygen on this fire here? I mean, where does the breath even come from?"

Inside, Rika chuckles and happily says "oh Miss Lykamei. Sometimes it is best to not question these things."

The little ghost girl merely shrugs, even though the maid can't see her, then proceeds to grab her new necklace, and stares at the golden wings on it.

Her eyes suddenly turn back to the fire, they sparkle as a mischievous smile covers her face, then she rushes toward a spare pile of firewood, takes a few pieces of wood, quickly runs to the fire, then throws them in.

Immediately afterward, she inhales as much oxygen as she can; her body expanding like a balloon; blows on the bamboo pipe when full, then Reimu screams at the top of her lungs right after the fire takes too much life.

Minutes later, Lykamei lies on her stomach on the living room's floor with a bump on her head, and a mischievous smile on her face as she chuckles and mumbles "that was funny~."

"No it wasn't, you evil little roach," barks the angry shrine maiden with red burned skin under the white towel.

Rika stops Reimu before she strikes the ghost with her gohei again, and with a nervous smile on her face she says "My Lady, she's my guest. Please, allow me to deal with her after your foot massage."

The shrine maiden sighs, rubs the back of her head, then begrudgingly says "fine, fine. But if she does any more mischief, I'm sealing her inside a bottle."

Suzaku flies on top of the ghost girl with the sparkling eyes, notices the girl is looking straight at the door to Reimu's room, then telepathically says "_I suggest you stay put, or you'll find yourself in a pickle jar, Miss._"

The girl merely moans sadly, then says "fine. I'll just watch them be naughty."

* * *

At that same moment, at the dark courtroom, Shikieiki growls after having pressed the button on her circular machine to the right of her stack of papers.

She gulps as she stares angrily at her machine, then says to herself "that was close. To think he succeeded after dying in there. I hope he'll have better luck next time. Still, what was that odd sensation just now?"

She jumps off her seat to stretch her legs a bit, and while walking around the large dark room, she says to herself "it felt cold and painful at first, but it suddenly became warm and soothing. I wonder what does that mean."

At her meditation room, Byakuren Hijiri sobs softly as she puts her hands back on her hips.

Tears flow down her cheeks, even though she smiles warmly, then looks to her left at Shou, who smiles weakly as she asks "so he failed with us too?"

"I'm afraid so," begins the magician monk. "I felt one of us changed her mind about him, but he had already failed when that happened. I still managed to link with his mind. The poor thing."

Concern fills the tiger youkai's eyes, and she hesitantly asks "but won't Miss Yama get mad at you for interfering?"

The Youkhrist wipes the tears from her face with her forearm, smiles at the girl, then says "she's the one that asked for some assistance. She mentioned something about a certain spirit getting angry at her."

Shou's face turns pale while she's thinking, then says "that must be one heck of a spirit, if the mighty Yama is willing to go out of her way to keep it pleased."

"No, it's not like that," sweetly chuckles Byakuren. "She merely wants to keep her word to her, and she also, _truly,_ wants Ail to come out of this as undamaged as possible."

The tiger youkai lets out a silent "oh", then sits besides the Youkhrist, crosses her legs as she takes a meditative position, then relaxes herself and closes her eyes.

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Kyo, Luna, Kali and Lykamei were created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami and Suzaku were created by Snapshot 2010

Rika's Spell Card: Hikari, Byakuya Senmetsuken (Light, White Night Annihilation Sword), was created by Snapshot 2010

JUN 17 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**I apologize for taking so long with this chapter, but the hell-like heat took all my motivation away, and it took me a great deal to get it back. Oh well, I'll do my best to write as fast as Aya flies. LOL, a guy can dream.**

**One thing to point out is that I tried to lessen the impact with Byakuren's scenes, but... by lessening the manner in which she was affected, I made the characters around her hurt more. *Sigh* Well, this was bound to happen.**


	4. Chapter 4

**NOTES: ** Again, keep a sharp eye out. There are some silly, **AND** interesting revelations here, but some are subtle, while others are just plain as day. Good luck spotting them.

Legend: [_i_] = a sudden thought between the dialogue, or Ail talking to his other self.

Dec 24 2012 - Glad to have finished this re-edit for this chapter in just one day. Sorta. You'll notice I added "NegaAil" to the villain Ail here. It looks better that way. I have fixed many mistakes and rewrote a few tiny things. Aside from that, there aren't that many changes.

* * *

Ail wakes up to a cool and quiet autumn morning next to the Dragon God statue at the Human Village.

He sits on the red grass, swipes a few orange and red leaves from his person, then looks at the tree next to himself, stares for a moment, then ***SSHING***!

He now stands on the road behind that tree with a reddish-black blade of energy that sways around at a slow pace, like that of the tail of a cat on the hunt.

The upper half of the tree behind him slowly slides off its base and falls on top of the statue; making very little sound, surprisingly enough.

The boy wills his blade off, turns around to admire his despicable work, and with a smooth yet cold tone on his voice, he says "that's for covering me with leaves. Pheh; never liked that damned tree anyways."

He dusts his hands while smiling with satisfaction, then asks himself "wonder what should I do [_H-hey! What gives? Why did I just cut that tree?_] today...?"

The boy's red eyes glow as a malicious smile creeps onto his face, and after a quick snicker he says "so, you're awake. Good! Now you can see how a _real _man lives his life!"

[_Wait a minute! What the hell? I'm you? You're me? Wait, you're not me! GET OUT OF MY BODY THIS INSTANT!_]

"No way kid," begins the dark boy as he starts his walk toward his house. "You've been messing around here for too long. Got Keine to suicide, got my favorite bunny girl killed, and even went and got yourself killed after that. I'm not [_What the hell are you talking ab-*GASP*! It's you! That damned spirit! But you're supposed to be dead! What's going on here?_] going to let you wander around in my body any longer!"

Confusion becomes evident in Ail's face as he holds his chin; though never stopping his walk; then says "so, you really don't remember how badly you messed before. Well, don't you worry. I am here now, and I intend to make things right for me, starting with Reimu."

[_YOU DISGUSTING SON OF A-! Don't you DARE harm Miss Reimu!_]

The boy stops, snarls at a staring old lady near a house, making her yelp and painfully limp her way into her home, then says "hurt her? You fucking idiot! I _love_ her! [_HEY~! You made that poor woman hurt her back!_] I would never hurt her!"

The red-eyed boy sighs, and then says "forget that hag. Anyways, it's time to teach you how to be a man, so we are going to _love_ Reimu-chan, not hurt her. Heheh, you're in for a wild ride, kid."

He starts moving toward his house again while thinking about what he plans to do, chuckles, his cheeks turn a bit red, and now he quickens his pace.

[_W-w-wait a minute! L-love Reimu? As in... DON'T YOU DARE DEFILE MISS REIMU YOU VILE FIEND! I swear, if you touch her I am going to cut your hands off-! Ah, but wait, I'd be cutting my own hands. Never mind that! Don't you DARE touch Reimu-sis!_]

"Hey, Reimu is my _wife_! I can do whatever the hell I damn well want with her," barks the red-eyed Ail, getting many odd looks from the early risers around him, and then softly adds "besides, I've been neglecting her for some time. She _wants_ and _needs _this, kid, and what Reimu-chan wants, Reimu-chan **_gets_**."

Ail arrives to the house with the curtain for a door, walks right through, and places a red barrier in front of that bare opening.

Inside the small house, Reimu and Rika sleep at a tiny room to the right of the tiny home's living room, where they both barely fit, but the boy doesn't care and makes his way to them.

His wife is sound asleep, wearing a thin white dress, snoring softly under her covers and letting her cute voice fill his ears while doing so, unaware of her husband's presence.

He kneels in front of her feet, slowly crawls on top of the girl, making sure to not disturb Rika [_NO! Don't you DARE! I'm not letting you! LA-LA-LA-LA-LAAAAAA~! Ha, my voice is so annoying! You can't do anything while I'm screaming, right!? WELL TAKE THAT! HEAR MY ANNOYING VOICE FILLING YOUR-_] and after the kind Ail's voice is willed shut, he smiles with a soft chuckle and starts caressing the girl's face.

As she moans in her sleep, the red-eyed boy smiles dearly, bends over to kiss the girl on her lips while thinking "_your loss kid. I guess I get to enjoy this all by myself,_" and then Reimu finally awakes.

She stares at her husband with fright, but slowly relaxes after she fully wakes up, smiles and suddenly sits up to kiss her man on the lips, then whispers "my love, what a surprise."

Ail smiles back and whispers "hey honey. Why don't we just cut to the chase now that you're awake, hmm?"

She chuckles mischievously, wraps her arms around the boy, giggles happily, and whispers "you bad boy. I've been waiting for this for a while."

They both stop their advancing faces, halting the intended kiss to turn to face Rika, who is whimpering to the right with a terrified red face and with her wings fluttering very rapidly.

She wears a thin white shirt similar to the black haired girl's, only hers fails to cover her belly button, whilst Reimu's reaches just above the panties.

Husband and wife stare at the girl, then the mistress casually asks "so, you want in, or what?"

* * *

That snowy morning, at the Scarlet Devil Mansion; glass breaking, wood shattering, and light explosions unsettle the surrounding area, though the uproar only lasts for a short while.

In front of the gate to the mansion stands Meiling Hong, the gate guardian, who has long scarlet hair with long strands tied to the side of her face into braids with black ribbons, beautiful and lively aquamarine eyes, and wears a green vest over a white shirt with long sleeves, a green beret with a star that has the Chinese symbol for "Dragon", and a pair of long white pants that are covered by a green skirt with a long slit.

The Chinese-looking girl sniffles and rubs her nose with her index finger, sighs as a few fairies fly by the area, then softly says "wonder what's going on in the mansion this time? It's so noisy."

After some time of peace and quiet, the gate guard's eyes start to get heavy, her head tilts several times, and then she finally relaxes enough to drift into her subconscious mind.

"**WWWAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**" ***CRASH***

And now Meiling jumps ten feet in the air after the bloody scream and nerve-wrecking crash that came from within the mansion; that also disturbs everything up to the outer shores of the lake.

Inside the mansion halls, Patchouli Knowledge pants hard as she slowly runs toward a sturdy table, lets her upper body drop on it, and even though she's out of breath, she manages to shout "Ko-Koakuma! Use ice! ICE, DAMMIT!"

She has long purple hair adorned with fuchsia and light-blue ribbons tied to both sides of her hair and a lilac mop hat that's also adored with equally colored ribbons that make two cute buns on it and a golden crescent moon. She has purple eyes, and wears a lilac robe over a purple and light-purple sleeping dress.

Koakuma, whom has long red hair, red eyes, tiny black bat wings on her head, larger black bat wings on her back, and wears a black vest over a white shirt and a black skirt, jumps backward while shooting small icicles from her right hand.

She sighs anxiously, looks at Patchouli, notices her large chest being squeezed against that lucky table, blushes, and then says "Lady Patchouli, it just won't stop! I shoot, but I can't hit it!"

"What are you looking at," angrily replies the magician before getting up, then more calmly says "it's like trying to shoot smoke! What's worse, the little sister can't blow it up like she normally does."

"**WAAAAAHHHHHHH**! Get it off, GET IT OOOOOOOFFFF!", screams Flandre as she stumbles around the corridor while trying to wrestle the black three-tailed cat off her hands, chest, legs, or head; wherever the little critter may be scratching and biting for more than one second.

She slams her left arm; where it currently is; against the wall, breaking a hole on it in hopes of ridding herself of the monstrous beast, but now it's scratching her stomach, causing her to cry "why! won't! it! DIEEEEEEE! OOF!"

The blond vampire is tackled from behind by a boy and a girl with light-blue hair, ice-blue eyes and ghostly-pale skin, whom wear light-lilac jackets over white shirts, and red pants and skirt.

The girl, of course, has longer hair, and happens to be the one wearing the skirt, and she also happens to be the one using a basic icicle spell to scare the nekomata away.

"He's all yours, my cute little pet," declares Lina, getting a thumbs-up from Koakuma before said little devil runs after the fleeing feline.

Leon walks over to Patchouli, stares at the girl's chest, making her very nervous, and when she opens her mouth to speak, the boy jumps on her, hugs her tight, making sure her breasts are squeezed against his face, then he happily says "I love getting my reward from my love."

The flushed girl smashes the boy on the head with a book and shouts "NOT NOW YOU LITTLE IMP!"

Flandre lifts her head off the ground, looks around and moans in confusion, then twitches, her left eye shrinks while her right one expands, and watches with horror while that evil black cat carries the unconscious Koakuma by the belt of her skirt and tosses her in front of the understandably terrified library-dwellers.

It meows casually, makes his way to Flandre, hisses a chuckle, and then lifts its right paw, popping one sharp claw after the other in rapid succession.

The cute little girl shuts her eyes tight and whimpers while she waits for those stinging claws, but soon notices the lack of burning pain, so she opens them again to notice the evil black cat staring frozen behind her.

Kimi Hong, Meiling's shadow, stands behind the vampire, showing off her new looks by standing with her ample chest pushed up, her belly tucked, and her arms on her hips.

Her light-orange hair is now made into a ponytail that reaches down to her butt, and adorns it with a golden star on a pin on the left side of her head.

Her right eye is red with a black lizard-like pupil, her left eye is black with a round red pupil that seems to be surrounded by white flames, and she wears an open, sleeveless black jacket over a red t-shirt, white short shorts, and a pair of white calf-high boots that help accent the beauty of her legs.

She grins vilely at the cat, then asks "oi, kitty-cat. What's your beef with that vampire? Don't you know she's _my_ future victim?"

The black nekomata screeches loudly as its eyes become pink hearts, its hair frizzles up and stands on its ends, and floats in mid-air.

It suddenly runs around in front of Flandre, swinging its claws at her but missing miserably, then suddenly jumps up to the ceiling, clings on to it, then runs away as if it were running on the ground.

Kimi's grin vanishes in an instant, looks at Sakuya, and then asks "was it something I said?"

The maid's cheeks turn pink, chuckles nervously, then hesitantly says "uhh, I think you just earned yourself an admirer."

The shadow girl smiles triumphantly and says "hell yeah. Day one with my new looks and I'm already knockin'em dead!"

She grabs the maid in a hug and says "I owe you one, sexy time-human."

Sakuya can only chuckle nervously while trying to escape the shadow dragon, Patchouli stares at everyone in disgust, Koakuma moans and rubs her head while getting up and asking "is it over?", and the Kori twins are about to speak.

The purple bean sprout covers their mouths, lifts them off the ground, and makes her way to the library while saying "we'll study pheromones later."

"Wait, take Miss Kimi with you. It's time for her studies as well," exclaims Sakuya.

"Studies? What are those? Are they tasty?" asks the clueless shadow girl.

Koakuma merely chuckles, bows slightly, and then says "come on Miss Kimi. Follow us to the library."

The shadow dragon groans after quickly understanding the predicament she's in, but follows after the little devil as if not having any other choice in the matter.

Flandre gets off the ground, looks around at the now-empty corridor, shouts "and what about ME!?" then looks to the left, where the black nekomata is peeking its head from the corner while flipping its middle claw at her.

A vein pulsates on the blonde's forehead; she gets on her feet, and chases after the evil cat while screaming "get back here! GET BACK HERE AND DO THAT TO MY FACE SO I CAN BREAK YOURS!"

* * *

At the Human Village, NegaAil sits next to a round table in a small restaurant, holding a small sake plate oh his hand, merely staring at the plate's contents, not caring that what few people are in there are giving him very dirty looks.

He shakes his hand lightly enough to make the liquid wave around a tiny bit, then softly mutters "Reimu, my love. I-[_Wh-where am I? What happened? Umm, wait a minute. *GASP* Reimu! What did you do to Miss Reimu!?_]"

The red-eyed NegaAil chuckles, then says "ah, you're finally back. Don't [_What did you do to her? ANSWER ME!_] worry, she's fine. She should be having _some_ trouble walking for a few hours, but rest assured, I would never hurt my own wife, even with Rika pissing me off."

[_WHAT!? RIKA!? W-what did you...? YOU EVIL FIEND! You defiled my little sister? THAT IS IT! I am going to KILL YOU!_]

"I wonder how **_that's_** gonna work for you, kid?" asks the red-eyed boy as he gets the sake closer to his lips.

The boy drinks the sake from his little plate, puts the money he owes on the table, then gets up from his chair and asks "besides, do I look like the type of guy who kiss-and-tells?"

He ignores the snarls from the nearby humans as he makes his way outside the little restaurant, [_Well YEAH! You're pretty much scum!_], grins with malice, then says "yeah, you're right. I am. But I'm not telling _you_. [_And did you just drink sake? Do you know what that does to... Wait, you're not telling me? *GASP* You DEFILED THEM BOTH, didn't you!? You disgusting, son-of-a-!"_]

The boy stomps his foot on the ground so hard, the shockwave caused by it rattles the restaurant and several houses, though does no actual damage, and then NegaAil shouts "REIMU IS MY WIFE, you WIMP! And whether Rika joined us or not is _none_ of your damned business."

He resumes his walk while continuing "besides, you wanted out. Take responsibility for your choices. What happened between us three is for me to know, and you to never find out. OH, and I got used to the sake for you now, you wimp."

The walk through the village is a quiet one. Not a comment comes when a strange wind pushes the red-eyed Ail away from Keine's school, though the good Ail feels he knows why, yet is confused about it.

Once they reach the exit leading to the Forest of Magic, the boy quickens his pace and mutters about flying, [_Wait, the forest? Are we going to my house? Your house? Um... our... house? ...JUST SAY SOMETHING!_] "ARGH! Stop screaming in my brain, you idiot! I was about to fly too! Geez!"

He takes off to the air and angrily says "no, we're not going to that old place. It belongs to Budou now. [_Budou? Shouldn't we go check on her?_] And no, we're NOT going to go check on her, _EVER_. _We_ have to go visit Alice."

His gaze becomes dark and cold as he speaks in a dangerous undertone, "she has yet to give me results, [_Whoa there, why do you sound extra angry all of a sudden? H-hey, you're not going to harm her, right?_] so it's high time I pay her a visit."

"HI AIL~!" cheerfully calls a familiar girl from above.

The boy turns around to face the newcomer, and immediately his eyes fill with lustful desire.

Gengetsu approaches the red-eyed boy [_Oh look, it's Miss Gengetsu! Hmm, how odd. I wonder where Miss Mugetsu is?_], smiling and waving as casually as ever.

The red-eyed boy explores the girl's body repeatedly, confusing her a bit, then says "well, well, what a gorgeous demon! [_HEY~! Stop using my body for perversion! That's Miss Gengetsu, so you better treat her with respect!_] Tell me sexy lady, where have you been HIDING all this time? Such curves you have!"

[_WHAT DID I JUST TELL YOU!_]

The blonde places a playful finger to the right of her lips, and in a seductive tone she says "oh, you're _this_ world's Ail, I see. Mmm; not bad. Want to go one round with _THIS_ dream demon?"

[_WAIT-WAIT-WAIT JUST A MOMENT! What's going on here? Am I surrounded by perverts? Whoa, wait, did she just say 'this world's Ail?_]

"Pipe down in there, you wuss," angrily says the red-eyed boy, whom quickly wraps an arm around Gengetsu's hips, pulls her closer, and playfully says "I'd love to try a demon of _your_ level of beauty out."

He sighs, gives the girl's shoulder a tug, and says "sadly, my time here is tight. It's only a matter of time before that infernal machine resets everything, [_What are you talk... ing about? Wait; why does that sound familiar?_], and I need to check on Alice now."

The girl expresses her disappointment, then says "fine. But I'm coming with you. If you finish with that pup soon, you'll have time for me, right? Heheheh."

[_I am SO keeping my distance from that girl._]

The boy slaps the winged demon on the butt, making her yelp and giggle afterward, and with that lusty grin on his face he says "that sounds like a wonderful idea, sweetheart. [_Seriously, Sanae is going to be so mad if she ever finds out about this. Wait, what the hell am I saying!? I have to stop you!_] Come, that girl's house is only a few minutes ahead."

Gengetsu blushes as she giggles happily, then says "ooh, you are _more_ interesting than the other Ail. Too bad you're married, or I'd make you _mine_ right now."

They take off toward their destination as the red-eyed Ail smiles and says "I definitely like you quite a lot already. [_Grrr! STOP IGNORING ME!_] Say, what can you do with those wings?"

The girl giggles sweetly, blows a kiss to the boy, then sweetly teases "that's a. se. cret. U-fu-fu."

* * *

Meanwhile, at Kyo's house, Su-San is using her tiny shovel to take out the piled snow off the roof, and keeps throwing the snow toward a specific spot.

From that spot, a girl exclaims "come ooooon! Just answer 'yes' or 'no'! I can't publish this without proof, or Tenma's going to punish me again!"

The girl is Aya Shameimaru, the crow tengu reporter with shoulder-length black hair she adorns with a red tokin (hat), red eyes, and wears a white button shirt with yellow and brown maple leaf motif strip to the left, a black skirt with a matching strip to the right, and red geta sandals with a thick single platform.

She moves left and right blindingly fast to avoid more snow, then peeks through the window she's hogging and exclaims "come on! Are you and Luna Medicine's parents, yes or no? It's a simple questi-ACK!"

After a horrible crunch, another voice takes over Aya's, asking "come on Kyo, between, like, friends and all that. Are you and Luna her parents?"

Hatate Himekaidou, another crow tengu reporter that has long brown hair adorned with a purple tokin and tied to twin tails with purple ribbons, brown eyes, and wears a pinkish button shirt, a purple and black checkered skirt, and long black socks and wooden purple geta sandals, stands on the bloody pile that's supposed to be Aya.

She taps the window lightly, then cries "come on, at least let me have something warm! It's freezing out there!"

"Go home you two," commands Kyo from the living room.

He, Medicine and Luna sit on the living room's couch, the doll youkai sitting between the couple as they rest against each other's shoulders.

All three sigh at the same time, then the boy gruffly says "these birds are really stupid."

"You're telling me," replies the girl. "But this is all your fault for picking on that yamabiko youkai. _You_ should go out there and deal with this."

The doll youkai sighs, then says "guys... we're out of snow. Either we dump a bomb on them, or start making up a story that will _make_ them leave us alone."

The couple stiffen, slowly turn their faces toward each other, evil smiles grace their lips, then they get off the couch and rush to their room on the second floor.

Outside, Aya and Hatate hold each other by the cheeks and pull hard on them.

"Jusht go home, you perverted shut-in! This shtory is mine," speaks the senior reporter through stretched cheeks.

"Nuh uh! Thish shtory ish mine! Go make up shtories in your nesht like you alwaysh do," replies the brown haired junior under the same conditions.

The girls hear the door to the house open, then some footsteps heading their way, and quickly straighten up side by side and smile.

"Please just answer my question and I promise I'll be out of your hairs before you know it," says the perky Aya.

"I'll give you three free copies of my newspaper if you, like, make the interview exclusive to me," sweetly adds Hatate.

Kyo and Luna stand by the corner of the house with mischievously triumphant smiles, and sounding calm, the girl says "Aya, dear, I know we're friends and all, but you really pushed me."

"Eh?", questions the tengu, then the boy says "and Hatate, why did you make that mess of blood on the wall? Now we'll have extra cleaning duties."

While he says that, the nervous brown-haired shut-in glances over to the mess of blood splattered on the wall when she crushed Aya.

Both reporters gulp, each takes one step back from the smiling couple, whom mysteriously appear right in front of them, then the couple pull something from behind them.

"**WWWWWAAA*CAW*AAAAAAAAAAAHHH*CAW*HHHHHHHHH!**"

Both girls scream a bloody scream as though being cut to pieces and served live for dinner as they fly away from the village at neck breaking speeds, and crying twin waterfalls as they rush away.

Kyo and Luna wrap an arm over each others' shoulders while laughing uncontrollably hard, and pat the large round disk they have in front of them, which has a red center that's surrounded by a white circle, which is surrounded by orange-yellow and black.

The couple stop laughing, suddenly to turn their necks and stare curiously at three particularly interesting girls.

Mokou, whom is being trailed by several love-struck males, happily points forward and says "come on girls, get the led out! The resort is still hours away. And boys, I'm only wearing it when I'm actually swimming, so stop asking."

"**AWWWWW**"

Tewi and Reisen carry an elegant red and black litter, better described as a norimono, and struggle greatly to keep it up, but after the immortal's edging, the Moon Rabbit furiously groans "then help us CARRY this thing! It's heavy!"

Kaguya pokes her head from inside and furiously shouts "hey, she could burn me alive! _You_ carry it until we reach the destination."

"You heard the pampered shut-in! Hop-to-it girls!" loudly says Mokou with a chuckle.

The princess looks forward, a massive red vein pops on her forehead, then she jumps right out of the litter while shouting "why the hell are we following _her_ for!? Let's kill her and be on our way!"

"Because she knows the way," groans the Moon Rabbit just before their princess jumps out of the litter.

The rabbits sigh with a bit of relief after their load becomes slightly less heavy, yet still grunt while moving forward, and Tewi complains "we can barely _walk_!"

"HAHAHAH! Too slow, Kaguya!" taunts the fiery immortal after taking flight to avoid a single yellow laser from the Lunarian Princess.

"I'll _show_ you who's the prettiest, you sexy thi-AAAARGH! I did it again~" cries the black haired girl in frustration, adding an unnecessary noise to all the blasts, male cheers, and tomboyish chuckles.

Reisen and Tewi notice Kyo and Luna staring at them, both rabbits sigh sadly, then the light-lilac haired girl whispers "story of our lives."

Kyo and Luna remain where they are and stare at the disappointed Mokou fans as they slump their way back home, the rabbits carrying that heavy-looking litter, and the quarreling immortals shooting danmaku in the air.

"Yup. Just another day in Gensokyo," casually says the boy.

"Mm-hmm," replies the girl with repeated nods.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Forest of Magic, specifically at a large clearing with a western-looking white house with a blue door, a blue roof, and a tower to its left, three blonde girls oversee the process of the removal of the snow that's piled on said roof.

Alice Margatroid, whom holds a large black book, and has short blonde hair she adorns with a pink band, blue eyes, and wears a blue dress with a white capelet and a pink ribbon around her neck and waist, points toward the roof of the tower and commands "don't forget that one!"

The dolls cleaning the roof, most with long blonde hair, dark-blue dresses and black eyes; the rest are of varied appearances; all salute the puppeteer before making their way to the top of that tower with their little shovels on hand.

On the girl's left shoulder, wearing a red dress with a white apron, a red bow on her long blonde hair, and with innocent-looking blue eyes, is Hourai, and after a sigh she comments "I miss the taste of pineapple."

Joining the puppeteer from the right shoulder, wearing a violet dress with a black apron, a red bow over her long blonde hair, and also having blue eyes, Shanghai stares in absolute confusion at her sister, and then she and Alice share their confused gazes, though none dares speak a word.

"Heeeyyy! Alice, Shanghai, Hourai! Came over to play with you, zei~!"

The magician girl sighs and places her hand on her forehead, both happy and annoyed that the awkward moment was brought to a halt, and sounding monotone, she says "right, Marisa. I guess this means you _did_ get something from the Netherworld."

"Hey mama Alice," cautiously says the purple-dressed miniature girl. "We should bring that thief to justice ourselves."

"Pipe down pipsqueak," angrily retorts the ordinary witch. "The thingy I **_borrowed_** is a strange one, so I brought over some help."

The three blondes stare curiously at the witch as she pulls a large brown sack over her shoulder with ease, sets it gently on the ground, and unwraps the opening.

"Darn it all Marisa, you could have just asked me to come along! This is really unethical!"

"Aww, pipe down Kourin. I treated you gently, just like I promised."

The three girls keep staring at the black and white one and her 'package' in shock, then Hourai takes off flying and asks "how _did_ you fit him in that bag? Did you shrink him?"

Rinnosuke Morichika, whom has short silver hair, glasses over his yellow eyes, and wears a blue and black kimono-like outfit with a large brown bag around the waist, stand up from the snow, points threateningly at Marisa and says "that's not what I meant. You're really getting on my nerves, so take this as warning number two!"

The blonde witch tries to keep a steady face, but it turns so pale, and her eyes become so filled with fright, even Hourai notices her current state and returns to Alice's safe shoulder.

The puppeteer sighs, but just before she shoos her unwanted guest away, and maybe rescue Rinnosuke, said guest presents her with a straw doll that blinks it painted-on eyes, waves its little straw hand in the air, and tweets.

Alice and her little daughters stare at the creepy doll with amazement, then the magician asks "wait, is this a mechanical doll, or something else?"

"That's why I brought Kourin over, ze," casually says the grinning witch while pointing behind herself with her thumb.

The man sighs irritably, but simply gives up, takes the waving doll, and adjusts his glasses while studying the item carefully.

The little straw doll is very simple in design; has an oblong head with hair made from straw, the body is made of brown cotton, it's been adorned with a red overall and a little white shirt, and its hands and legs are mere stubs with pieces of straw escaping the crudely-finished ends.

"Gimmie' that," mutters Alice as she takes the doll from the shopkeeper's hands, while said man simply holds his chin and says "I see. This doll isn't mechanical. It's using the energy that emanates from spirits to move, so it's my guess that it should stop working soon."

"Aww," complains Marisa. No wonder it stopped running and jumping when we got home. Oh well, I guess I'll have it back since Ali-hey, where's the ting?"

"Done," calls Shanghai from the front of the house, and both blonde and silver haired shopkeeper stare on with amazement.

Hourai holds the straw doll, which now has a more rounded head, a black smile and a pair of round black eyes; it's been given fingered gloves and tiny red shoes, and a cute black, wavy wig.

The proud puppeteer crosses her arms under her chest, and with a grin she says "much better," then blocks a sudden gust of wind with her left arm.

The girls and their guests look to the left, then Alice says "well, seems there's a storm coming. Come on, let's get inside before we're buried in snow."

"No thanks, I need to get back to my-ugh! Marisa!"

The mentioned witch pulls Rinnosuke by the arm and forces him toward the house, while saying "it's not common to be invited by Alice into her home. Don't be a discourteous guest now."

Shanghai waits for the dolls and guests to enter the house, then she, Hourai and Alice casually make their way through the door, shutting it tight behind themselves."

* * *

Brown and red leafs fly around the front of that blue door in succession as the strong winds blow ominously in front of Alice's gloomy-looking house that autumn noon.

Ail and Gengetsu stand ten feet away from said house, where the red-eyed boy snarls and says "that bitch! [_Who the hell are you calling names, mister!? I have a good mind to slap you with a mackerel across that face!_] She's _still_ not doing what I told her to do!"

"Who are you talking about sexy-buns?" asks Gengetsu while keeping her eyes on the boy's lower body.

The vile boy grins, then says "Alice Margatroid. [_Hey, leave Alice alone! And how DARE you call her... THAT! Grrr! I'm taking over this body NOW!_] That damned bitch seems to have forgotten her place, so I just need t-HEY! Quit that, kid! I'm not giving you this body back any times soon!"

For a moment, the red-eyed Ail's arm twitches and trembles as it moves toward his own neck, but quickly drops down after the evil boy focuses.

Gengetsu grins at this, then says "well, you bad boy, it seems you are having trouble with little Ail there. I'm still 'eating' you, even if you turn back, you know."

[_NOOOOO! Keep her AWAY!_]

The boy grins, sighs, then says "thanks hot stuff. You scared him back in his place."

He ignores the girl's giggles and makes his way toward the door, and the closer he gets to it, the more twisted with hatred his face gets.

He lifts his fist to knock, chuckles softly, then kicks the door open, making a loud bang. and shouts "ALICE! Where the hell IS IT!? [_Leave her alone! Alice, RUN!_]"

He looks around the seemingly empty house, then walks inside while saying "no kid; she knows better than to run away. After all, I have her dear daughter. [_What did you do? **What the hell did you do!?**_]"

"I didn't do anything, kid..." says NegaAil as he gets closer to the white cupboard at the end of the living room that is filled with finished dolls, then he suddenly reaches for the top of the cupboard's door, grips something tightly in mid air, and adds "...yet."

He squeezes whatever it is he's gripping, then a black book falls from mid air, and Alice appears in the evil boy's grip, drooling and grunting while trying to pull his arm away from her neck.

Hourai cries and shoots the evil one's arm, but it's as if her bullets are merely being absorbed, then she desperately cries "LET MAMA GOOOOO! PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE!"

[_LET HER GO! DAMMIT ALL! Grrr!_]

The boy suddenly lifts the blonde and swings her around, then smashes her back against the wall to the right of the cupboard as hard as he can, and shouts "YOU LITTLE TWERP! Stop trying to take over _my_ body! And _YOU_..."

NegaAil winds Alice back and smashes her back against the wall again and again, repeats the process, making her progress from yelping to crying out in pain, and grins as he gets a sick sense of satisfaction from making that girl and her little daughter cry.

He stops after he feels the blonde is losing consciousness, then holds her tightly against the wall by her shirt's collar and says "I thought I told you I wanted results! WHERE ARE THE SOULS!?"

The girl coughs out loud and lets out a cry of pain, but steels herself so as not to give that sick bastard further satisfaction, and out of breath says "I tried, you god damned lecher! I really tried, but I don't have the proper skill to sort them out, nor do I posses a proper vessel for one to temporarily inhabit!"

The vile boy's eyes glow with rage, and without warning he sinks his left hand with his fingers separated and stiffened to look like claws against the girl's stomach and pushes it hard.

He slowly twists the hand around, making the girl whimper, and ignoring her pleas and tears, he continues to torture her while speaking though his teeth, "I don't want fucking excuses, I want RESULTS! [_Dammit, dammit, dammit all! Let her GO! Alice, shoot him! KICK HIM ON THE JEWELS! Don't let him do this to you!_] I don't care for your pathetic shortcomings!"

"Hey boy, that's no way to treat the ladies," comments Gengetsu in a disappointed undertone. "You better stop that."

"Shut your mouth!" barks the boy back. "This is business."

The red-eyed boy suddenly hops back, releasing the girl and allowing her to fall on the floor where she curls up into a shivering ball, then he smiles at Hourai, who holds a large shaving blade, and looks just about ready to slice the boy's neck in half.

"Hourai," hoarsely calls Alice from the floor before coughing twice, "don't! He'll hurt Shanghai!"

[_Shanghai? Dammit all you sick bastard, what did you do to her?_]

NegaAil rummages through his left pocket, and quickly pulls out a crystal with two pointy tips, where Shanghai's soul, blue in color, is trapped in its center, looking lost within.

When it spots Alice on the ground, it goes on a frenzy within its prison, as if trying to break free, but fails miserably.

The evil boy grips the crystal and starts squeezing it in his hand while saying "maybe I need to motivate you a little more," the crystal cracks, the soul within writhes, the blondes scream "**STOP**", and with a sadistic smile on him, the evil Ail continues "get me that soul and keep it in a bottle, for all I care. All I want is a child for REIMU; NOT EXCUSES!"

[_What the hell? ARE YOU MAD!? Reimu would never forgive you if you did something like THAT!_]

"STOP, STOP! DON'T HURT HER!" desperately cries Alice.

"Stop hurting my sister!" demands the tiny girl, and surprisingly enough, the vile boy complies.

Defeated, the puppeteer starts to cry after her pleas are heard and the monster boy stops torturing the little soul, then manages to say "I'll do it, just don't hurt her anymore!"

"Excellent," mutters the boy in a sickeningly dark undertone.

The winged dream demon walks closer to the boy, places her hands on her hips, and then says "you sure are persuasive."

The boy merely scoffs as he places Shanghai's soul into his pocket, then says "you don't know the half of it. [_Kehh! I swear, when I get control over my body again, I'll exorcize you with a FLYSWATTER!_] Say, why don't we mess around with these girls for a bit? Let's have some fun while we're here. ...I got plenty of free time now."

Even Gengetsu feels a bit hesitant when she looks into the boy's eyes, then nervously says "n-no way. I think you've done enough to her as it is. Why not just leave the child alone?"

She finds herself pushed back and bound to the living room's sofa thanks to a charm on the neck that threatens to cut her air, then the vile boy sighs and casually says "suit yourself. I'll just have some fun with them on my own, and then I'll come by and play with _you_. So in the meantime, stay put."

[_I gotta get this body under my control! I have to STOP YOU, you disgusting pervert!_]

The red-eyed boy looks toward the fallen girls and says "no Ail, you can't get this body back. You know, I can easily shut you off again, but I won't. I want you to _watch_ this."

He grabs both girls by the collars of their shirts, then rips the fabric.

* * *

A full hour later, both Alice and Hourai lie on their sides at a corner of the living room, both breathing hard and labored, and both appear to have their legs and wrists tied together.

Their clothes lie in ruins on the floor near the corridor, and staring at the girls with disgust, NegaAil says "struggle a bit more next time. It will amuse and please me greatly."

The girls let out a sob, then the puppeteer softly cries "I'll get you for this someday, Ail; hic! I promise."

He ignores her as he makes his way toward Gengetsu, the lust in his face explicitly evident and getting worst the closer he gets to her.

She can only scowl at him and watch as he gets closer, looks at that hungry boy's face and feels both fear and excitement from all that's happening to her now.

NegaAil's eyes are suddenly filled with dread, and before he can voice his confusion, his right hand reaches for the seal on Gengetsu's neck and pulls it off.

"HEY! Dammit Ail, stop that right now," growls the evil boy, whom is unable to control his limbs, and is being forced against the very same wall he smashed Alice against.

[_I am going to make you pay for what you did to them. I'll make sure to make you suffer before sending you to meet with the Yama, with a damned letter of recommendation for the deepest pit in hell!_]

The boy's left hand rummages through that pocket and starts shaking as Shanghai's prison is brought out, then the evil Ail angrily shouts "no! What do you think you're doing!? If you let her go, I'll never get that child for Reimu!"

[_Too bad, you sick and depraved pervert! TASTE MORE FAILURE!_]

"NOOOO[_Besides, I'm doing you a _favor.]OOOOOOOO!"

The evil boy's scream causes the entire house to rattle and Alice and Hourai to weakly lift their heads, while Gengetsu merely watches next to the door, not really caring for anything happening with the characters in that house.

The boy's thumb presses itself against the top of the crystal, flips the pointy top open, and Shanghai's soul escapes her prison in the form of a light-blue mist.

The mist rushes to the rooms at the corridor, while NegaAil gets control of his right arm and grips his left arm, threatening to break it off, and roars "you son of a bitch! I'll make you pay for-"

The front door breaks open and the red-eyed boy sighs sadly, then says "oh no. Not you."

Rinnosuke stands under the doorway, holding a two-handed Japanese sword in a defensive stance, and looking fiercely enraged, he says "I'll apologize to Reimu at your funeral, Ail. Now STAY STILL AND I'LL MAKE THIS QUICK!"

The boy waits for the silver haired man to come, moves left at the very last second to avoid getting cut in half, then runs toward Alice's room.

He reaches halfway through the corridor when he is met with a lance that sinks in deep into his right shoulder.

He groans out loud in great pain, [_You're not escaping this._] and looks with horror at the figure of Shanghai in her dusty blue clothes, the very same way he had left her when he stole her soul.

She twists the lance in the boy, humbling him with pain, and darkly says "you'll regret making mama Alice cry so much, you scum."

The red-eyed Ail weakly grips the tiny girl's shoulder and tries to pull her down, but rolls forward instead, taking the stabbed lanced with him, and enters Alice's room to the left.

At the corridor, Rinnosuke pulls his sword off the floor, then sternly says "Alice is being taken care of. Help me take him down before he escapes."

Shanghai nods, summons a blade to her right hand, says "let's make this as quick and painful as possible," then she and the man rush into the room.

They quickly move to the sides of the doorway to avoid a shower of lances, blades and red bullets from within, then rapidly move into the room with their weapons ready.

Alice's room is empty, save for the few dolls lying on the ground to the left of the bed, and the bloody lance that was stuck in the villain's shoulder now staining the floor.

Rinnosuke glances around, never lowering his guard when he says "keep your eyes peeled. He's a master of deceit, and can strike at any time."

NegaAil drops from the ceiling; appearing seemingly out of nowhere and holding a pair of golden washtubs, and striking his pursuers on their heads as he lands, effectively knocking both down.

[_Wow, I can't believe how WEAK you are. You're only winning this because Rinnosuke can't use magic or danmaku and Shanghai is still weak, but if he could and she was well..._]

"Shut up, Ail!" barks the red-eyed villain as he runs out of the room. "The only reason I'm not hitting them hard is because I _need_ this house in one piece for Reimu, nothing more!"

He runs through the corridor, aiming to reach the exit door, but stops abruptly and places a thin barrier on his very skin when he feels as if an invisible knife is trying to slice him in several places at once.

The boy growls as he struggles to recompose himself, looks to the right towards the living room, sees Alice and Hourai barely covering themselves with the rags of their old clothes while the puppeteer willes her threads to cover the doorway, then roars "you BITCH! When I get my damned hands on you-"

His own right hand grips his neck to the point of making him gag and drool [_You watch your damned mouth! As soon as I get full control of this body, I'm making sure to make you pay for everything in spades!_], but the red-eyed boy merely grins and grunts "f-fuck. you. all."

He jumps to the right and smashes his back against the wall to avoid Rinnosuke's sword, letting it cut Alice's threads instead, then quickly regains control of his arm and runs outside.

His left leg is caught by another one of Alice's strings; he falls on his face and rolls the rest of the way out of and away from the house, and after the fifth roll, he lands on his feet, takes an attack position, summons a black energy sword with blood-red energy flowing within, then says "and now I'll remind you all why you should fear me!"

A large silver washtub falls on his head, making a strong clang, and knocks him down to the ground, where he whimpers while holding on to the bleeding bump on his head.

* * *

Meanwhile, on that cold snowy noon, at the Hakurei Shrine, Rika walks to the living quarters with a basket full of vegetables from the storage house.

She places the heavy basket with the food on the counter in the kitchen, looks over to the living room, and watches as Lykamei observes Tenshi, as the blue haired girl lies on her stomach on the floor and keeps drumming her fingers on it while sighing and moaning in frustration.

The shrine maid manages a weak smile after seeing this and walks over to them, being quieter than a mouse as she does, and places her index finger on her lips to ask the ghost girl to remain silent.

Lykamei complies and smiles to let the maid know she can make her move, and then her eyes sparkle when she realizes that angel girl is going to cause some mischief.

Rika walks to the sulking celestial's side, activates her Soraogan mode, then quickly, but gently, drops her body on top of Tenshi's making the girl twitch and gasp softly after she feels those soft and round mounds hit her back.

Blushing fiercely, and after hearing a mischievous giggle from the ghost, the celestial looks down at her hand as she starts drawing circles with her recently-drumming fingers, and monotonously asks "wh-what's the matter Rika-hime? Do you want me to move, or something? _Please say no. Please say no!_"

The angelic maid rests the side of her head on top of Tenshi's upper back, moves her feathers so that they are touching the blue haired girl's cheeks, and sadly says "Momoko looks sad. I want to make her happy again."

The celestial's face turns redder; yet her face becomes more peaceful; and sounding relaxed, she says "then why won't you wash my back, or maybe give me a massage, l-like with the ghost princess and the Hakurei."

There are two odd clicks from the right, but the girls ignore this.

Instead, Rika just coos, gently scratches the back of her friend's neck under the scarf that's now blue, and sweetly says "aww, I'm sorry Tenshi. You just wanted some attention and I didn't give you any."

The girls fail to notice Lykamei holding Hatate's yellow and orange checkered camera and holding her left arm with her other hand to take yet another photo, closing her right eye and sticking out her tongue, as if making great efforts for the perfect shot.

The blue haired girl nods quietly, then sadly says "I wouldn't mind if it's just combing my hair. You know; something simple. I-I do know how to take care of myself, and stuff."

The angelic maid giggles softly, kisses her dear friend at the back of the head, then says "why don't I give you the whole thing too? Te-he-he! I don't mind sharing a bath with you."

She starts scratching Tenshi's head while smiling happily and removing her wings so as to see her friend blushing fiercely again, but that enjoyment is short lived when instead she is met with another enjoyment.

The celestial's face becomes completely relaxed, though her cheeks remain red, and appears to be falling asleep while Rika rubs her back and scratches the back of her neck.

A mischievous grin escapes that sexy maid, and she enhances her efforts and effectively makes her friend moan contently as she relaxes further and starts to fall asleep.

"Hmm, does Tenshi-chan like this?", asks the teasing maid while the relaxed girl weakly nods and drifts to a blissful sleep.

They both stop and turn their eyes to the right, and stare at Lykamei as she fools around with Hatate's camera.

Curious, Rika gets off Tenshi, cancels her Soraogan, sits next to her friend, and asks "Lyka-chan, what are you doing?"

"Trying to send some pictures through to the internet," casually replies the ghost girl while she keeps fiddling with the device. "Hmm... I guess I can't."

Tenshi looks greatly confused as she asks "what's an internet?", and Rika looks greatly relieved, then says "I'll explain the internet to you later, Tenshi."

She turns her attention back to Lykamei, and asks "sweetie, where did you get that camera? Doesn't that belong to Hatate?"

The cute ghost turns her cute, dark yellow eyes to the maid, smiles, says "I don't know what a hatate is, but..." then she pulls a loose board under the tatami, pulls a rope that has Aya and Hatate tied tightly back-to-back at the end of it, then sweetly says "I found this neat toy in the pocket of tonight's dinner!"

The brown haired tengu girl with twin-waterfalls splashing down her cheeks looks up pathetically at the maid and cries "please, help me Rika-sis. *Sniffle* I've, like, had such a bad day."

"Ayayaya~. Hey Rika," begins Aya with a weak, forced, wriggled smile. "This is kind of embarrassing, but I fell for her shiny necklace trap too. Can you get me out of this?"

The angelic girl stands up with her hands on her hips while saying "Lykamei, you bad girl! These are Aya and Hatate, our friends! We do not eat friends!"

She looks up at the maid with those innocent eyes, then says "b-but Yuyuko says birds are the tastiest of foods, and should be eaten whenever one can."

Rika sighs as she places her hand on her forehead and rubs it, mutters "Lady Yuyuko, what were you teaching this child," then composes herself, and in a soft, but serious tone, she says "it's true that birds do make delicious meals, but there are souls already here for that purpose. You can't just go around and kill any bird you may see. Life must be valued, and even animals meant to become food should be respected and treated as equals, no matter what."

The girl thinks for a moment, smiles, says "oh, I see. Like those dead birds at that store you took me to this morning! _THOSE_ are for eating, but must be respected", then she pulls on the end of the rope, and both tengu spin like a giant top, then fall dizzy on their backs, free from their bindings.

Tenshi snorts, returns to lying on her stomach and drawing with her fingers on the floor, then is pulled back up and embraced by Rika, who says "I haven't forgotten about you. After dinner, I'll take care of my dear Chik-err, Tenshi-chan!"

The celestial presses her cheek against her friends while returning the embrace with a giggle, then the two tengu scream as their bodies fly straight out of the living room, going through the open door to the left.

Reimu's pink-socked kicking leg holds stiff in mid-air as she stares angrily toward the exit, points at the kicked tengu girls, then shouts "don't let those _things_ in here!"

* * *

NegaAil swings his sword upward, but is intercepted by Rinnosuke's own, then he shoots red arrows to the right and jumps away from five red lasers, twirls in the air as Reimu would, and as he does, he shoots several red and orange orbs that mimic the look of Reimu's yin-yang orbs.

The orbs fly fast toward Alice, Shanghai and Hourai, and while the two semi-naked girls in pink underwear and the doll-sized blonde take cover behind some nearby trees, the vile boy rushes the silver haired man.

The red-eyed boy thrusts his dark energy sword toward the shopkeeper's neck, but he man parries the attack and kicks his attacker on the stomach, forcing him to roll to the side.

[_Heh, so much for the 'fearful monster' that's supposed to be you!_]

"Shut it kid! I'm merely playing a bit with them," says the vile boy as he rolls back on his feet and shoots lasers and charms at the puppeteer, then adds "besides, I want another round of fun with Alice. Have to teach her to behave. [_YOU WON'T TOUCH HER AGAIN!_]"

NegaAil chuckles as he blocks Rinnosuke's attack, then suddenly grabs the man's hand, cuts him sideways with his dark sword, making the silver haired man scream when the searing pain takes him, then kicks him back toward the white house.

Rinnosuke rolls several times, revealing the burns left behind by the dark blade all around his exposed skin, then stops when tree feet from the door, where he loses consciousness while the threads of his cut shirt keep getting consumed by fire.

Even unconscious, his skin feels as though it's being bitten by tiny bits of lava with teeth that inject him with more magma as they eat him away.

Hourai's eyes fill with terror when she watches that man convulse and twitch, but it's when he starts foaming at the mouth that she loses all her nerve and screams "MARISA, HEEEEELP!"

"MARISA!?" screams the boy in surprise, whose eyes start to glow scarlet when they become bloodshot, and even his lips seem to turn dark.

Alice and Shanghai both scream angrily at the tiny semi-naked blonde, then that familiar cool voice of Marisa settles them down as she says "oi, this sneak attack was bound to fail. Don't take it out on her, ze."

The black and white witch is currently wearing her brown apron with the "M" on it and her usual black and white attire, which fits her now-adult and curvy body almost perfectly.

Her eyes glow orange and turn reddish after the glow dims, there is the shape of a star scarred on her right eye, and now the youkai girl takes flight while holding her broom on her hand, and darkly says "Ail, you disgusting bastard. I really hoped I never had to see you again, and yet here we are."

Her long, smooth flowing hair waves around as she summons her magic to herself, while staring at that hated boy with a face that suggest she's looking at the most disgusting thing in the world.

"**YOU BIIIITCH! YOU GOD! DAMNED! BIIIIITCH!**"

The furious boy grows a frightening black aura that shoots red sparks all around the area near his body, his eyes turn black with red pupils, yet Marisa seems as disgusted as before.

The darkened NegaAil points a finger at the girl and furiously shouts "she called for you! She called and you never came! [_Whoa! Calm down dude! HOLY SHIT YOU'RE INSANE! That's too much power!_] She needed you the most! She wouldn't cheer up, even for **_ME_**! Why didn't you come for her! **YOU WERE FRIENDS!**"

The youkai witch's face twists with hatred, yet she calmly replies "you're the asshole that took her away from me, pushed us apart, threatened me to keep away, and now you _dare_grow the balls to tell _ME_ such a thing!"

Without her Hakkero on hand, she prepares a colorful beam on her palm that buzzes just like her Master Spark, and shouts "the only reason I didn't go was so I didn't have to melt your goddamned face in front of her! Unlike you, I'd never deliberately hurt her friends, you disgusting excuse of a man!"

"Those bitches all deserve what they got! Not _one_ of them came to console her in her time of need! [_That's not the way to deal with things, you monster!_]", shouts the boy to the point of tears. "Out of all her friends, she called _you_ the most, but you never came!"

He takes flight and hovers at the same height as the blonde witch, then sinisterly says "but that's in the past. Today I'll take revenge on you, the one that called herself 'Reimu's best friend.'"

"LOVE COLOR, MASTER SPARK"

"NIGHTMARE SIGN, DUPLEX BARRIER!"

Right after the boy's shouting, they both declare their spells simultaneously, and just as Marisa's massive beam is about to hit the boy, a red barrier appears around him that seems to absorb the beam and crack a bit.

A black barrier appears after that and the beam appears behind the boy, seemingly headed toward him, then another red barrier appears and traps the youkai witch inside it.

She yelps and moves right at the last second to avoid hew own massive beam, then finds herself dodging small talisman-like bullets of black and red, and quickly formulates a plan.

Before the dark Ail shoots the next volley, she rushes to him and hits him on the head with her broom, effectively knocking him to the ground and canceling his spell.

Before he is up, she raises a spell card and declares "Love-Magic Sign, Milky Way!", spreads her arms and legs as her spell card floats over her chest and glows yellow, then a dangerously ridiculous amount of stars and tiny multi colored beams fly out of her person in a spiral that moves clockwise.

The dark boy flips on to his feet with a spell card glowing red already on hand, and declares "Tainted Spirit, Nightmare Seal!"

Five red orbs and five black ones appear around the boy, and shortly after, he kicks off the ground and spears toward the witch, using the orbs to block the unfriendly barrage, then is blasted on the face by a single beam just as he gets near her.

Marisa scoffs as she watches him fall and says "you love her enough to mimic all her spells, yet you taint them and they lose their power! It's pointless Ail. You can't hope to defeat me."

The dark boy roars as he falls, sends the last eight orbs at the youkai woman, watches as those are consumed by the blonde's spell, then clicks his tongue and flies away.

"Oh no you don't!" shouts the witch as she takes off after him with her spell card active around her.

"_This is not possible,_" thinks the boy as he makes his way toward the village. "_Her love spells are canceling my own! I can't win!_"

[_Wo-ho-hoa, I see. You have become so wicked and tainted that real love has become a burden to you._]

"Shut it, kid!"

* * *

As Nega Ail flies low enough to brush the top of the trees in the forest, he looks around and mutters "need to find somewhere to hide. [_The coward's tactics?_] I gotta strike that sexy bitch from below... [_You know, if you hadn't been so vile, I would have helped you, but you are just disgustingly evil._] then she's mine, and I'll take my revenge for Reimu's pain."

He dives down and hides behind a tree, forcing Marisa to chase after him while taunting "where are you going, _Ail_!? You're man enough to taint her spells and fight with them, yet lack the balls to face me, ze? I am extremely **_disappointed!_**"

The boy with the black aura hides behind a thick tree, but is soon blasted away by Marisa's exploding bouncing blue bullets, which are a mimicry of her old exploding bottles, and soon finds himself rolling on the ground to avoid stars, lasers, beams, and her still-active Milky Way spell.

He shoots black beams at her [_You are NOT getting away from this! I don't care if my body is destroyed any more, you are not escaping_], rolls to the side, but when he tries to get up, his arms and left leg refuse to move.

"D-dammit Ail, are you crazy!? She's going to kill you too!" grunts the evil boy as he struggles to move around with just his right leg. [_I just told you. I'm not letting you get away._]

"What's this?" begins the youkai witch as her spell times out and she walks closer, as casually as if nothing was happening. "So, your good side is surfacing, isn't it? Well it's too late, Ail! What you did, to everyone, to Byakuren, Alice, Keine, to that satori girl and her sister, the vampire. I don't give a shit if you are all good now, I am making you pay for everything."

"You claim you have done all those evil deeds because of your love for Reimu, but what will you do when she finds out about all that you have done and hates you for it!? Ail, that was not the way to deal with your pain! And now it's time I taught you exactly why."

Her hand starts buzzing again as she prepares another Master Spark, and says "and don't think that barrier will save you again. It's too tainted to contain _THIS_ particular Spark. I still find it amusing that you love Reimu so much, that you'd be able to copy her powers. *Sigh* Explaining this to her won't be easy, but it must be done."

The evil boy grins, his black aura disappears and his skin turns back to normal and in a sinister tone of voice, he says "that's right, I forgot. My darling Reimu _did_ teach me how to use her spells... And you know something...?"

Marisa gasps when that familiar holy aura starts surrounding the boy, "MASTER SPARK," and shoots her massive laser at him with despair behind her voice, then "Divine Spirit, FANTASY SEAL!" watches as the beam goes around the boy's magical field.

"I managed to master a few of her spells _AND_ augmenttheir power," finishes Ail as thirty orbs of red, blue, while, green and yellow rise and start moving clockwise around him.

The blonde witch takes off to the air the moment those orbs move, and turns around at times to shoot the closest orb away from herself.

On the ground, Ail's face twists and deforms as the evil boy struggles to keep the body under his control, and the flickering orbs are a good signs that he is failing.

[_Give it up, you damned bastard. This body is MINE, and there's not a damned thing you can do to stop me from taking it back._]

"That's what you think," grunts the struggling boy, and soon after, he summons that black blade back to his right hand, struggles greatly as he stands, and smiles as he watches Marisa flying toward him with a hateful look.

"Watch me take this girl down and use _your_ body to please myself with her. After that, she can kill you as many times as she wants."

[_LIKE I'LL LET YOU!_]

Gengetsu flies out of hiding from one of the treetops that's between the diving witch and the boy, looks at the evil one, then shouts "I found you, you disgusting bastard! I'm gonna make you pay for scaring me like that!"

In his normal tone of voice, Ail struggles as he shouts "G-Gengetsu! W-watch out... MARISA!"

The blonde turns around, looks toward the youkai witch, whom shouts "GET OUT OF THE WAY!" yelps like an idiot when she realizes they are too close to each other, and instinctively shoots a ridiculous shower of white orbs while running away into hiding.

One of the orbs hits Marisa in the eyes, causing her to scream and cover her face, making her blind, and then she crashes on the boy, lifting a thick cloud of smoke after impact.

Inside the cloud, the good Ail grunts "M-Maris-ACK! Hurts... .s-sa. Are you. there?"

The woman coughs, something splashes near the boy, and then she grunts "th-that was good... ze. You got me good, but, URK, I won't go alone, it seems."

The cloud of dust dissipates, and in the center of it, Marisa hangs limp with the dark sword going through her chest and with blood staining her mouth and the ground below her, while her left hand holds a dagger made of love light that's going through the boy's heart.

Ail stands on his shaking legs with his left hand holding his straightened right, and after a grunt, he and the girl fall on their sides facing each other, then the boy with golden eyes cries and softly asks "why?" Marisa, why are you dying too?"

[_Stupid kid; I made this sword to harm and kill gods. Of course she's going to die. It is better this way, though. If I can't have Reimu, then nobody else can! Now then, enjoy your last moments alive. Happy death~_]

Marisa looks back at the boy, then smiles and softly says "hey, it's you; the real Ail. How have you... been, z... ehhhh?"

She expires after speaking, leaving a very sad scene behind, and even though he wants to cry too, the dense boy can only sigh as he feel the world around him disappear in a white light.

Before the entire world is consumed, he can see Gengetsu looking at him with pity, then shrugging and waving casually with her fingers, as if merely saying a quick "see you later."

* * *

Ail wakes up in the familiar misty room on the bed of red flowers, sighs as he gets up, sits on the side of said bed, and places both hands on his face while groaning.

"What a way to wake up, huh? Right after a quick death filled with love, ze," comments the witch in the room.

Ail looks to his right and lets a halfhearted smile grace his face as he says "that hurt, you know."

Marisa, whom is back to her normal human state, chuckles contently as she walks toward the boy, and says "well, it hurt less than losing your entire left arm. I'm sure you'll agree."

The dense boy lifts his face with a terrified expression and asks "he did that to you?"

She nods and says "after you and Reimu got married, I tried visiting like I used to, but first off, I don't like the village that much. Second, you started attacking me all the time, until one day you just broke my arm and cut it off."

Ail winces and is about to apologize like an idiot, but she stops him and quickly adds "but that happened just before you and Reimu learned about the child thing, so you did take me to Eirin's, and I had my arm reattached. But after that..."

"You stopped visiting for good," finishes the boy with a sad smile on him. "What kind of a messed up person I become?"

"Keep in mind, Ail, that this is the world you _almost_ created," begins the witch with a more serious expression. "And although you DO become a villain, and quite a despicable one, you are not entirely evil like you think you are."

The dense one can't help but look at her quizzically, and even has three yellow question marks appear over his head, and then she chuckles mischievously and says "as stupid as ever, I see. I like this you better, da-ze."

She turns around and holds her hands behind herself while saying "no Ail, that other you is severely misguided, but not purely evil. I'm a bit disappointed you didn't learn that already, even after I blurted out such obvious clues."

There is a short pause to allow the boy to think, then the girl continues "look, we want you to understand the reason you do all these terrible deeds is because of love. You love too much, and often take the wrong paths because of it."

"Tch, don't waste your time on that stupid kid! Let's just give him the message and be done with it!"

That smooth yet vile voice causes Ail to stand up with his fists raised in defense and shouts "what the hell are _you_ doing here, you disgusting bastard!?"

Marisa sighs while NegaAil rolls his eyes and throws his arms in the air with an annoyed "OYYYY! So STUPID!"

"Listen you dense idiot," begins the angry boy, "I have decided to join these guys in helping you out, but don't you _DARE_ even dream we are allied in any way! I just don't want you hurting my Reimu again!"

In the blink of Ail's eyes, Marisa and his supposedly-evil counterpart sit on a drawer in front of each other; both with a matching leg raised; then the witch strictly says "Ail, listen! This is important!"

The red-eyed fiend scoffs, then says "next time you wake up, you will be taken to the Dark Blowhole, and from there you will make your way to the Earth Spirit's Palace! There you will learn something that _SHOULD_ open that damned brain of yours! It _SHOULD_ help you expedite this process so you can go home!"

Ail watches the two from a distance with suspicion, and asks "and why should I trust you? How do I know you aren't just trying to get me killed off for good?"

The room starts turning white at a very rapid pace, but before everything disappears, the evil boy grins vilely and says "you don't!"

At that moment, at Mayohiga, Chen, a two-tailed nekomata with short brown hair she adorns with a green mop cap, a pair of black cat ears with an earring on the left ear, dark brown eyes, who wears a red dress with long pink sleeves, takes her finger away from the funny button on Yukari's glowing pyramid, and admires as the red light becomes blue, then shortly after, turns green.

"Cheeeeen~! I need your help here," calls Ran from outside startling the cat girl.

The girl whimpers while trying to catch the pyramid again, sighs with relief after holding it secure against her chest, then quickly takes it back to the sleeping Yukari, placing it under her sheets.

The gap youkai has somehow moved herself to the bed she stole from Ail, and hibernates contently, unaware of her shikigami's shikigami playing with such an important item.

Chen pats the blonde on the head twice, chuckles mischievously, quietly makes her way out of the sage's room, and after closing the door she softly calls "coming Ran-sama~!"

Yukari moans and smiles, her cheeks turn slightly pink, she starts rummaging under her sheets until she places the pyramid in a questionable position on her lower body; with its tip upward; and after a content moan she mumbles "mmm, so warm. Must... Chen and Ran... and the beach cats."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, Flandre throws her claws to the air to deflect the vile three-tailed cat that tries to claw her face again.

She, the cat, and many mummies are in one of the many living rooms in the mansion, which is currently in shambles thanks to their current battle.

"HA! I got you now, you mongrel! Taboo, Lavatein!"

She swings her giant red sword; which the cat merely hops over; throws it overhead; which the cat simply avoids by hopping left; then swings the blade left; which the cat just hops over again, though this time screams after a surprise.

*BANG* *BOOM* "MWWEERRRRROOOOOOWWWWWW!"

The little vampire left a trail of danmaku behind her blade, which caught the confident black cat off guard, and before he can recover from the blasts, she rushes to him and grips it by the flop of skin on its shoulders.

Holding the evil feline in the air, she laughs triumphantly, raises her arms in the air, and declares "I HAVE WOOOONNNN! WAHAHAHAHAHAA!" stares at the annoyed cat's yellow eyes, then asks "now what?"

Sakuya, one of the mummies who is covered to the neck in bandages, smiles elegantly as she happily says "let's take it outside, chuck it in the frozen lake, and forget it was ever here."

Patchouli, whose face and hands are covered with bandages, muffles "let's shave its hair off and use its skin on one of my most deadly experiments."

Meiling, whom, for some odd reason, has bandages around her right leg, a cast on her left leg and arm, and has two black eyes and a neck brace holding her head still, sighs, spits out a tooth, and says "if you can help me cook, I could teach you a very tasty recipe that uses cat meat as the main ingredient."

Koakuma, whose back wings are being held by a slightly bandaged Lina, while Leon, whom is bandaged around the head and hands, helps her keep steady on her bandaged and scratched body, grins vilely and sinisterly says "let's offer its soul to the demons of Makai and serve his flesh to the hell hound of the underworld!"

"*Sigh* My cute little pet is really angry, isn't she," comments the Kori girl and getting a nod from her brother.

"HE SCRATCHED MY GORGEOUS BODY! I WANT HIM TO SUFFER FOR IT!" quickly barks the little demon, causing her left head wing to fall off after the strained outburst.

Flandre hums as she scratches her chin while in deep thought, looks at the cat on her hand, then gasps and exclaims "wai-wai-wait, what the ***** is the meaning of this! ?"

Instead of the cat, she holds its soft black hair, then looks to her left and stares at the nekomata as it grins at her with jagged teeth.

In the fraction of a second, the evil creature is making her cry and scream at the top of her lungs after it creates a bouncing fight cloud, where it scratches and bites the cute blonde vampire into submission.

"There you are, you naughty cat you. I've been looking all over for you."

All heads turn right after the cat leaves Flandre alone and casually makes its way toward one very happy-looking Remilia, who catches it in mid-jump and scratches his head while cooing and speaking playfully at it.

"There's a good kitty cat. Oh, I see you were playing with Flandre. That's good. She needs the extra attention."

The crying blonde sniffles as she sits back up, revealing her face, exposed belly, arms, and back full of scratches. Her clothes are ripped at the belly, back, her skirt turned to mere shreds; revealing a pair of red panties under her shredded bloomers; and somehow, the cat put a pair of black cat ears on her head, replacing her mop cap.

"Onee-sama," she sniffles, "how could you!? That evil cat has been torturing me, and you're treating him like a pet! I HATE YOU!"

Remilia stares back at her sister with curiosity, and then says "you look really cute, Flan, but you should wear clothes. That's so unbecoming and unlady like."

"**ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?**"

After Flandre's outburst, Kimi enters the room, stares at the mess, then gasps when the nekomata jumps on her chest and clings to her breasts.

She pulls the thing off of her, stares at it, then asks "did you beat Meiling up like that?"

The gate guard sighs, then says "no, this was that sparrow again. He came over to play at the worst possible moment."

Kimi's lips wriggles as a chortle escapes her, her face becomes red, her eyes start to water, then she busts out to laugh at Meiling. "WAHAHAHAHA! Beaten by a bird! Oh my goodness, this is rich! Someone stop me! I'll die laughing!"

Remilia snaps her finger; the cat stands in attention in front of her, the shadow dragon stops laughing and stands casually, then says "enough playing around. Please clean up this mess. And kitty, it's time for your dinner, so come with me."

Flandre lifts her arm and wants to call her sister, but just slumps and sighs after giving up, then sadly says "I am going to kill that damned cat. I swear, I'll kill him next time."

"If you kill him, I'll lock you in the toilet stand for a week," casually says the Mistress from the distance.

The blonde girl starts to cry, while the rest of the mummified girls merely sigh and groan in frustration, then let themselves drop on the floor out of exhaustion.

Kimi merely stares at all of them for a while, then suddenly starts to laugh "A BIRD! WAHAHAHAHAHAH!"

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, Spell Cards and Scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Kyo, Luna, Kimi, Lykamei, Budou, Leon, Lina, the Rabid Karate Night Sparrow, and the black nekomata were created by Willie G.R.

"Nightmare Sign, Duplex Barrier" is a mimic of "Dream Sign, Duplex Barrier"

"Tainted Spirit, Nightmare Seal" is a mimic of "Divine Spirit, Fantasy Seal"

Rika Onkamikami and Suzaku were created by Snapshot 2010

JUN 25 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Just a heads-up that next chapter MIGHT (or might not... depending on my mood) be an interlude chapter. Seeing as there's so much going on outside the alternate world, I kind of want to catch up on those other events, especially Kaguya and Mokou. Oh, what CAN I do to mess up that princess some more?**

Kaguya: HEY! I heard that! Willie, don't you dare! I have powerful connections, and they are ALWAYS WATCHING!

Me: What? So they watch me when I'm at private-time?

Kaguya: KYAAAAAHHHHH! I didn't have to hear that!

Me: It's your own damned fault! Now answer my question *sob*! I feel so violated right now!

Kaguya: Alright, alright, I was lying! Jeez, stop crying, you big baby!

Me: *Smiles*

Kaguya: *Sigh* Sorry. Just stop making fun of me!

Me: AFTER the next chapter. I'll tone it down a bit, but just a bit. Besides, you have that bracelet Rika gave you.

Mokou: Hey, that's right! You've been killing me horribly lately! Willie, you damned bastard, stop forgetting and get Rika to give me MY own bracelet.

Me: ...

Kaguya & Mokou: **Wow, is he stupid, or evil?**

Satori: Just a little bit of both.

Me, Kaguya & Mokou: *Staaaaaare*


	5. Chapter 5 In the Morning

NOTES: Someone at the forums suggested a very peculiar naming for the evil Ail, so from now on, I will be referring to him as "NegaAil". Don't know if he wants to be mentioned, so I'll just say his initials are CV, and commend him for such an awesome idea. Oh, and for those that don't know, the name "NegaAil" is derived from "NegaDuck", and awesome villain from the Disney Series "Darkwing Duck". You should look him up. He was one of the most awesome villains ever!

Legend: [_i_] = a sudden thought between the dialogue, or Ail/NegaAil talking to the one in control of Ail's body.

Dec 28 2012 - Slight rewrites and fixes, nothing too big. There were some mistakes here and there, but they have been dealt with by Top Men. ...TOP! Men.

* * *

It's a very early winter morning in Gensokyo, and at the Kappa-Pa Resort, a place for relaxation for humans and youkai alike; built by Nitori and run by her computer, Julia; Kaguya walks out of her room, wearing an open pink robe that exposes her triangle-cut pink bikini beneath.

Her body, though not as surprisingly well toned and tanned as Mokou's, still holds a beautiful elegance, and enough curves to turn heads around, and she plans on using this wonderful gift of nature to the fullest.

She takes a deep breath, sighs contently, walks over to the rails of the second floor balcony, and rests her elbows on them while smiling and looking down, then says "from today onwards, Mokou's stupid fan club will dissolve, and all the men will be after _me_, like it should always be. I can't lose."

"Especially if it's going to depress Mokou; te-he-he~," finishes saying the surprisingly spiteful princess with a casual smile on her face, which suddenly becomes stiff with shock.

At the neighboring building right in front of her, the door to that particular room in front of hers opens up, and out walks Mokou wearing her hair in a ponytail, a red jacket over a dark-orange shirt that's slightly burned, and a pair of unbuttoned dark red short shorts that fail to cover her cute, tight, yet simple red swimsuit with the wide open back.

She notices her hated rival glaring at her, scowls as she smiles mischievously, then cheerfully calls "hey, Kaguya~ Good morning. Say, what a nice bikini you got there. I have one too, but I'll save it for the pool! Please don't drown unless I'm the one drownin' ya!"

The princess shrieks "MOKO!?" as her rage boils up to her face, and stomps angrily on the floor while shouting "How! the! _HELL_! you! pay! for! a! room! ?"

The light-lilac haired girl shrugs and says "when the guys saw me kicking your butt all the way here, they insisted I stay. They paid for my room, and were kind enough to get Keine and my stuff for me."

Kaguya is about to lose it again at the mention of Keine's presence, however she quickly turns away from the annoyingly cheerful girl, and mutters to herself "Kaguya, calm down. Yes, you plans are ruined, so you'll have to step up your game. First, I got to compose myself."

She takes a deep breath of air to calm herself down, then continues "I am the Princess of the Moon. She _dares_ challenge my beauty, but she just doesn't know what she's up against. Oh yes, my beauty is legendary. I can't lose!"

She turns around with a smug smile and a pointing finger, then just drops to the ground at the sight of Keine wearing an open white jacket over a white and blue bikini with sparkly adornments swirling around the white top, which is filled very nicely.

"Hey Keine," casually greets Mokou. "Ready for the beach?"

Kaguya remains flat on the floor as she sighs and says to herself "don't despair. I have younger-looking skin, and perfect complexion. I can still win without those udders!"

At the same time, the history teacher happily replies "oh yes, I am; and it was so nice of those boys to treat us both."

Reisen, who wears a lilac bikini with red waves adoring both top and bottom, which do wonderful things to the visual meal that is her curvy and well endowed body, shyly peeks her head from behind the door, and softly calls "Princess, your breakfast is ready. We ordered the vegetable omelet with the side of rice, and fresh milk."

The black haired girl quickly springs on her feet, squeezes Udonge in a tight hug, and exclaims "Inaba, you GENIUS! Milk will teach those girls a lesson they'll never forget!"

"P-p-princess! What are you-?" calls the nervous Moon Rabbit, whom starts feeling incredibly uncomfortable when her princess starts squeezing their bodies repeatedly tighter, and nervously says "please, let me go. Th-this is embarrassing."

Kaguya's eyes become two bright yellow sparks as she slithers behind her servant, grabs her well endowed chest from behind, and claims "MINE! THEY WILL TEACH THAT MOKOU AND HER COW! GIVE THESE TO _ME_, INABA!"

The poor rabbit screams as her face flushes, and then she runs in a circle and trips on herself, then falls on her face, knocking her offender off while panting with a mixture of pain and very slight pleasure.

"Please don't do that again!" demands Reisen as she lifts her head up, understandably upset over the attack to her body.

Ignoring the rabbit's cries, Kaguya zips to the table and drinks three of the four bottles of milk there, and as she suddenly and rapidly eats her breakfast with her chop-sticks, she says "oh yes *chomp-chomp-nom*, this milk and eggs will do it! *Nom-nom-nom* Yes, these will enhance my body, and I will defeat Mokou, once and for all!"

Tewi crouches next to the shivering Reisen with a casual smile on her face, and casually says "if she only understood the advantage of a simple body like her own, she would have already won."

The lilac haired rabbit girl holds her chest with her crossed arms as she stands up, then says "I'm not going with her if she's going to assault me like that again!"

Mere minute later, Reisen Udongein Inaba cries while she is dragged by her ears to the beach by Kaguya, accompanied by Tewi, whom hides her swimsuit under a pink bath robe.

* * *

"_What a terrible morning to have a curse on you._"

Flandre's thoughts echo in her mind as she runs for her life toward the clock tower, the one place she feels she'll be safe.

As she run, the stupid fairy maids think she's playing, or perhaps running away from her room, so they all move out to attack with danmaku.

"AAARRRGH! You stupid fairies! NOT ME!" shouts the desperate blonde, whom has no other choice than to whip out her Lavatein and flick it around like some sort of 'whip', making dangerous cracking sounds with every move from the wrist.

The poor fairies explode, and the lucky ones that survive the attack are soon dealt with thanks to the vampire's stray bullets, which happen to fly after the red whip's every movements.

She continues to run, dodge bullets, whip fairies, shoot bullets, and pant hard, and then she finally reaches the stairs leading up to the clock tower's balcony, and her possible salvation.

She look up the stairs and wonders if it's worth the climb, and then, "MMMWWWWRRRRREEEEEOOOOOOWWWWW ! *HISS*"

Flandre yelps out loud when that horrible roar and that bone-chilling hiss coming from so close behind her reaches her ears, but her goal is near, and she's not about to give up, so she takes off running up those stairs as fast as she can.

She pants and whimpers as she runs up those stairs, killing fairies that try to stop her with her whipping sword and stumbling on some of the steps, and then she hears movement coming from below.

Her whimpers become louder as the sound of scratches and bumps get closer to her faster than she can run, but then relief soon claims her, and she smiles.

She reaches the door to the Clock Tower balcony in record time, grabs that knob and turns it, breaking it off instead of unlocking it first, then rapidly runs outside, where the accursed sun struggles to shine through the thick winter clouds.

She is greeted by slowly-descending snowflakes that keep piling up on the floor, and both soothe and sting the skin on her face when they touch her.

She doesn't care about that, and merely runs toward the door under the giant clock, feeling disturbed by the sound of the snow crunching under her feet with every step.

She pants as she reaches the door, grabs the knob and makes sure to unlock it, "ehehe! Heh! This is it! He will NEVER find me in here! NEVEEEEERRRR!" opens and enters without a second thought, then sighs with relief after closing that door and wiping the sweat off her forehead.

She places her weapon on the floor beside her and her back against the door as she sighs and smiles, allowing the mechanical sounds of the clockworks fill her up, replacing the fear fed from that vile three-tailed cat.

After she is finally relaxed enough, she lets out a long and soothing sigh as she lets herself fall on her butt, then says to herself "I'm safe. This place is too noisy for cats, so he'll keep away, I'm sure."

She suddenly hiccups, her body twitches as her skin turns paler than a ghost's, her limbs shiver, and her terrified eyes refuse to move toward the pair of yellow dots over a white crescent in the darkness.

The yellow and white glows are rapidly accompanied by five shimmering objects that look like little blades, there is a low growl and a hiss, and Flandre cries with all her might "THIS IS JUST NOT FAAAAAAAIIIIIIRRRRRR!"

A little blob of darkness flies high above the sky, asking "is that so~?"

Meanwhile, Sakuya is at the front-yard's second floor balcony, wiping the dust and snow off the elegant white table and the chairs there, when a figure in ragged clothes appears at the doorway.

"Ah; Lady Flandre? What are you doing awake at these hou-?" she asks as she turns her elegant and cold face toward the figure, then covers her gasping mouth with her right hand, accidentally putting the dirty wet cloth in her gaping mouth, then exclaims "Young Mistress, what happened to you!?"

Flandre Scarlet is extremely pissed, her shirt has been torn to shreds and is merely covering her small chest, she has had to tie what remains of her skirt around herself like a fundoshi to cover her nether regions, and for some inexplicable reasons, her hair is now set as a cute and messy twin-tailed style, tied with the bits of her shredded hat that were made into ribbons.

Tears of pure rage well up under her eyes, and in a low growling tone, she says "Sakuya... I want... *breathes in*"

"...ONEEEE-CHAAAAAAANNNNNN! BWAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

Twin fountains of tears fall from her eyes to her sides as the bawls like a desperate child, forcing Sakuya; whose eyes become intense and unfocused; to cover her nose with that same dirty wet cloth, so that it absorbs the blood that so elegantly sprays out of her nostrils after such a sight.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Human Village, Ail moans as he wakes up surrounded by a very thick foggy mist on that winter morning.

Though it's cold, he can't feel the chill of the snow as it touches his skin, however everything feels heavy to him, and for some reason he feels depressed.

"Hello?" he calls as he looks around, hoping to see something through that thick mist.

A sense of displacement claims him, and now he curls up and shivers like a lost child, hesitating on whether calling again or not.

Unknown to him, up in the sky, a girl with shoulder-length wavy pink hair adorned with double-Chinese buns, red eyes, and wearing bandages on her entire right arm, a white shirt, a green skirt, a shackle on her left wrist, and a wine panel with a rose brooch, rides a infant dragon as she stealthily makes her way above the fog.

Both her eyes and the dragon's seem to be void of life, and both seem to be working like automatic machines, not showing a single shred of emotion or life.

She taps her dragon's left horn twice, and the creature automatically starts its descent.

Meanwhile, Ail has managed to stand, but needs to hold on to the Dragon God's statue for support after discovering his legs feel weak.

Frightened, he tries looking through the thick mist, and calls "is anybody out there? Keine? Kyo? Sana[_Reimu!_]e? Eh? R-Reimu?"

"Ail? Darling, is that you?" calls the familiar voice of the loving girl. "Where are you?"

The boy thinks for a moment, wondering why Reimu's name suddenly popped into his mind, then shrugs after thinking it was a stroke of luck, and calls "I'm here, by the [_Filthy!_] dragon statue!"

Ignoring the sudden though, he waits as the sound of crunching snow alerts him of someone's presence nearing him.

Reimu pops out of the thick mist to his left, surprising the boy, yet again, with her peasant appearance, and before he can process the though, she grips him tight in a neck-crushing hug, kisses him on the nose, then says "my love, you're alright! I was so worried!"

[_Play along, you moron, or I'll make your life a misery!_]

Disregarding the fact that he's just been threatened by himself, Ail decides to play along, and hesitantly ask "h-honey? Um, why-why are you worried? And what's up with this mist?"

She lovingly rubs the back of his head, sighs after the boy winces, then says "you hit your head again, darling. Oh well."

She lets him go, grabs his arm, pulls him along with her, and says "come on, we're in the middle of a nasty incident. People are being carried away. Nobody knows who or what is doing the kidnapping because of this mist, but those taken away return speaking gibberish for days. We have to be careful!"

"Maribel and Renko are on the job, but the culprit keeps slipping through their fingers, so they don't know when things will get back to normal either."

The boy sighs with a smile, then says "but Reimu, it's me. If anyone captures me, they'll just send me right back. Besides, you already said Maribel and Renko are taki-MARIBEL AND RENKO!?"

The thought processing finally concludes to what had just been told, and with surprise he questions the humans' names.

Reimu stops, turns around with a frown, then Ail yelps when he feels a strong tug at the back of his shirt, and chokes as he is forcefully taken by the dragon child and the hermit.

"NO! NOOO! AAAIIILLL!" desperately calls the black haired girl as she tries to chase after the attackers.

The boy wants to call back, but he is currently struggling against his own shirt so that it doesn't strangle him.

He manages to look up, stares at the somewhat lifeless Kasen Ibara, then croaks "Kasen? What are you doing? Let me go!"

The girl gives him a robotic-like glance, reaches for him, pulls him by the elbow, sits him behind herself, holds his arm under her own, and then monotonously says "Ail! Underground. Head for Chireiden."

Something ticks in the boy's head, making him feel this ride is something that is meant to be, and merely remains silent as he is taken to what he thinks should be the Youkai Mountain.

* * *

At the Hakurei Shrine, Tenshi and Rika, both whom look a little beat up and tired, walk side-by-side with swords on hand toward the source of a rather soft, yet annoying wail near the shrine's entrance.

They are surprised to find Lykamei there, wailing and dancing around a poor and unfortunate bird girl, as if performing some sort of ritual.

Mystia Lorelei; whom has short pink hair she adorns with a brown hat that has tiny wings on the top, grey eyes, pointy owl ears, purple wings with pink feathers, and wears a brown dress with long white sleeves and wing-shaped ribbons for buttons; has curled herself up on the snow and shivers with fright as the ghost girl happily twirls and dances around her.

The shrine maid notices the danmaku blasts on the ground, the ghost's body and the night sparrow's torn skirt, sighs irritably, then sternly says "Lykamei, what did we talk about yesterday; about respecting life."

The ghost girl's dancing stops, her innocent eyes are shot straight at the winged maid, along with a sweet and happy smile, then she floats over to the winged girl and eagerly explains "that's right, that's right! You see, I was shooting at her when I saw her flying by, then I beat her with a _wicked_ head-shot, then, when she fell, I remember what you said about life, so I started to dance the dance Lady Yuyuko taught me to apologize!"

Tenshi is already dizzy from the adorable ghost's rapid speaking, while Rika is wondering if she should scold the young one, or just let it pass.

"Ayayayaya~! This little ghost is FUN! Where did you find her, Rika-chan~?"

Aya lands behind the girls with a grin, takes a picture of the scene right after the girls turn around, capturing Lykamei with an expanded face and a huge tongue hanging from her mouth as she holds two fingers up on each hand besides her cheeks, then smiles at the girls and waves.

"Miss Aya," chirps the angelic maid at the sight of the crow tengu. "I thought you said you weren't coming back for a week. What happened?"

The reporter girl looks away to hide her pink cheeks while saying "erm, n-nothing happened. I-I'm just looking for a scoop, that's all."

Slowly, her gaze turns to the cute shrine maid's eyes, then her angel wings, then she gulps and shouts "WHY!? Why do I feel so attracted to you, Rika-chan!?"

On the background, Lykamei is helping Mystia up, and is dusting the snow off her skirt and hair.

Before Rika can react to Aya's sudden statement, she finds herself being tackled to the ground by one heated crow tengu, who quickly takes the left angel wing and rubs her face against it, causing her own black wings to pop right out of her back.

"Ayayaya~; Oh, so SOFT! I knew it! They're angelic feathers!"

On the background, the little ghost girl stares at the bird girl with a goofy smile, then suddenly pounces her and mimics the tengu girl by rubbing her face on those bird wings.

Tenshi kicks the offending tengu off her friend, and as she helps the maid up, she shoots a very hateful glare at the crow girl and says "you better have a good explanation for trying to soil _MY_ Rika!"

"Shh, shh, it's alright Tenshi," sweetly says the maid while flapping the snow off her wings. "It's alright. Miss Aya just needs a little affection is all. *Giggles*"

Aya crosses her arms under her chest and looks away to hide her flushing face, and then says "hmph! I-I don't know what you're talking about."

On the background, Mystia moans and groans for a moment, and after a mere second of silence, Lykamei exclaims "wow, your wings are so sensitive."

Rika takes two steps toward the tengu, disregarding the fact that Tenshi is trying to pull her away, then giggles again and sweetly says "Miss Aya~ Come here. Come here~" while flapping her small angel wings.

Shameimaru's face turns redder, her wings stiffen, her eyes fill with fear, and it seems she's going to take off flying, but something compels her to stay put.

Obeying that compelling feeling pays off, and now Aya finds herself moaning softly as she closes her eyes and drifts away to bliss, enjoying the soft and gentle scratching from Rika's hand.

On the background, Mystia punches Lykamei on the head, knocking her down to the ground, and cries "what do you mean you won't take responsibility! You stupid mean ghost! WAAAAHHHH!"

The dark-skinned ghost girl rubs her forehead as she stands up again, and watches sadly as the night sparrow youkai flies away while crying twin fountains.

From behind the tengu, Reimu pushes Aya's head down with great force, and takes over in enjoying Rika's gentle scratching, but before the maid questions her mistress, the crow girl rises from the ground and grips the shrine maiden by the cheeks.

"MINE! That hand was _MINE_, Hakurei!" exclaims the angry crow girl as she stretches the human's cheeks apart.

"She's _MY_ maid, you perverted bird," growls the red and white after gripping the tengu's neck.

Rika places a gentle hand on both their heads, begins to scratch them, effectively ending the fight when both girls drift back into bliss, and sweetly says "there, there. I have a hand for each of you. M-hm-hm~"

Behind her, Tenshi and Lykamei stare with longing, then the celestial with teary eyes sadly says "So, nothing for me again? Fine, I know that this is. You-"

Her words are cut short when those soft white feathers touch her face, and now she and the ghost girl are lost in bliss as Rika rubs their cheeks, the entire back of their heads, and the back of their necks with her wings.

A drop of sweat rolls down Rika's smiling face, and then she says "I think I may be spoiling these girls a little too much."

There is a loud clang on the left, Hatate falls head-first from the snow-covered tree, a dented bronze washtub falls to her left, then Suzaku flies away from that tree and telepathically says "_stalking is not allowed in this shrine, Himekaidou!_"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Kappa-Pa Resort's pool, Tewi; who wears a simple pink, carrot-motif swimsuit with a frilly skirt; sits on the edge of the water while watching people scream down the twirling slides.

At the other edge of the pool is Julia, a computer hologram that looks like a woman with long blonde hair that's wavy at the bottom, lime-green eyes, and wears a red business suit that covers down to her knees, a pair of glasses, golden earrings, and a plastic flower necklace.

She looks disappointed toward Kaguya, whom crosses her arms under her chest and pouts, while Mokou, whom has been forced to wear her orange bikini, softly cries "they saw it all," next to Keine, whom keeps patting her on the back and whispering "it's alright, they didn't see that much."

Julia taps her foot next to the princess and sternly says "this is a family vacation resort, and those kinds of attacks aren't permitted. Now I won't kick you out since this _is_ your first offense, but if you try something like that again, I will be _forced_ to take action."

The Moon Princess grumbles unintelligible words under her breath, sighs, then says "but it was an accident! I never thought one single bullet would dissolve her swimsuit like that!"

At the beach, the robots are diligently cleaning blood and corpses of happy-looking men and women from the sand, when one of them calls "I found it!", and all of a sudden, all the robots are ooh-ing at the tiny piece of Mokou's swimsuit bottom raised above the robot's head.

Back at the pool, Reisen bows to Julia, who angrily says "no danmaku outside the battle range, understood!? If you want that kind of competition, you go to the battle range! THE! BATTLE! RANGE!"

"Fine, I get it already!" spits the angry princess.

"We're sorry! We won't do it again," says Reisen while bowing repeatedly.

"They saw everything!" cries Mokou after sitting on the swimming pool steps.

"Most died before it dissolved completely. They didn't see," softly reassures Keine while comforting the immortal.

Julia gives another stern look at the Moon Princess, glances around the pool water, and then walks away while muttering "honestly. The princess looked so decent too."

Kaguya looks at the sighing Reisen, then at Mokou, mutters "pathetic," then flies toward the slides and says "Inaba, I want to have fun now. Don't bother me."

The lilac haired rabbit sighs and slumps as she softly begs "please don't do anything rash, Princess."

"Ooh, this one REALLY looks like fun," chirps Kaguya after reaching the top of the slides.

The Moon Rabbit walks over to the history teacher and her friend, sits over at the edge of the pool, and then sadly says "I'm sorry about the princess."

"You don't have to apologize for her," sighs Keine. "These battles of theirs are a pain in my side too, so I can relate."

Reisen's eyes become a little brighter after realizing she's not alone, and with a weak smile she says "well, it's only going to get worst now. After what she caused at the beach, she's twice as jealous of Mokou."

The light-lilac haired girl's tears dry up, her frown becomes an instant smile, her eyes ignite, and she excitedly exclaims "really? She's jealous of me? I never thought of that! That changes EVERYTHING!"

She stands tall with her left fist next to her chest, and happily exclaims "so what if some fools saw my body! I don't care as long as it annoys Kaguya! HA-HA-HA-HAA~!"

"She's pumped up again," sighs Keine with a look of disbelief.

"*Sob* Eirin's going to kill me for this," cries the Lunarian Rabbit after realizing what she has done.

"**KYAAAAAAAAAA~**"

Kaguya's screaming comes from the toughest slide, where she seems to be flailing about while crying in despair during her fast descent, causing the many people and youkai in the area to look to her direction.

This causes Mokou's smile to brighten even more, and she now watches with anticipation as she awaits the Moon Princess to come out of that middle slide's end.

The screaming girl shoots out of the slide like a blur, followed promptly by her cute pink bikini top, then she suddenly rises from under the water, gasping desperately for air.

"WAAAH~", she screams after spitting some water. "That was AWESOME! I want to go again! ...Eh?"

That's when she realizes there are many red faces aimed at her, curiously observes how those faces explode in a shower of nose-blood, then looks down at herself and notices her breasts are only slightly covered by her hair.

She yelps and dives underwater, somehow avoids the blood of the happily-fainted males; and some females; and manages to reach her top and take it underwater with her.

Mokou drops on her butt on the underwater step, holding her sides and rolling around while bending over and laughing so hard and so heartily, her own face turns tomato red.

Kaguya rises from the water again, this time with her swimsuit fully on and with a triumphant grin on her face, walks over to her hated, laughing rival, lifts her up by her bikini straps, and then she says "laugh all you want! Your fan club will be cheering for _me_ now!"

"**Tewi, Tewi, Tewi, Tewi, Tewi, Tewi!**"

Both immortals and their friends look toward the source of the cheers, and find Mokou's fan club lifting Tewi up, who easily sits on the hands holding her as she smiles smugly.

"WHAT THE HELL?" exclaims the Moon Princess, clearly angered by the turn of events.

The rabbit youkai kicks a hand and says "watch that hand, buddy," then waves at her princess, shrugs, and says "they saw me stretching out and went crazy."

Kaguya, Keine, Mokou and Reisen stare with disgust an fright at the cheering perverts, then the black haired girl mutters "that vile little bi-"

Unknown to them all, a light-blue boot and a white wolf's tail leave the scene before their owners are spotted.

* * *

At the Hakurei Shrine; after things have settled down; Rika sits with Lykamei at the shrine's veranda at the back, watching the snow fall and pile up on the ground.

"Miss Lykamei? Do you remember anything before turning into a ghost?", suddenly asks the shrine maid, her eyes hidden under a shadow, as doubt and sadness taker her.

The ghost girl's eyes turn blank as she moans while lost in her thoughts, and casually says "not particularly. I remember feeling pain in my chest before I woke up... then there was that pink haired girl with the big boobs and the wicked scythe. She talked a lot, but I didn't understand her. After that, there was the nice lady with green hair that took me home to the Netherworld."

The shrine maid manages a quick, yet weak smile as she asks herself "Shikieiki did that? I wonder why?", then looks at the little ghost with a sweet smile, and says "I see. Then I suppose it is better that way."

Lykamei grabs Rika's arm, tugs on it, and says "you know something. About me! Please tell me," while looking up at the maid with an adorable pout and rosy cheeks.

The winged girl chokes at the sight, blushes a bit, but manages to remain calm and focused while saying "well, it's not something I should be telling you. It... wasn't-"

"Hey, don't bring it up if you ain't gonna go through with it," demands the little ghost. "The cat's outta tha bag, lady. You know who I was when I wasn't a ghost, so spill it!"

Lykamei somehow managed to put on a yellow coat and a yellow hat to make herself look like some sort of detective, confusing Rika a bit, and getting a giggle out of the maid.

She giggles along with Rika, throws away the extra outfit, then sits on the angel's lap, earning herself a soft comb with that angel-soft hand, while that maid speaks.

"Well, you weren't the nicest person around. You were pushy, mischievous, you wanted to take over Gensokyo, even though you failed at it so badly, you were mean to others, you hated everyone, and..."

Unnoticed by Rika, her sword takes its colorful shape, and the jewel on it starts to glow bright blue as she speaks. "You... didn't like me much because there was an accident between us. And yet I knew that, deep down inside you, all you ever really wanted was a friend; someone to love. I tried to help, but-"

She feels Lykamei's hand caressing her cheeks, and that's when she realizes she's crying.

The little ghost girl, whose eyes have returned to normal, cries along with the maid, and after kissing her on the left cheek, she cries "d-don't tell more. It's making you cry. You must not cry! You smile, like you always do!"

It takes Rika a bit before she finally realizes her own feelings, gently grabs the ghost girl and wraps her up in a gentle embrace, fakes a giggle that becomes a gentle laugh after a bit, then whispers "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."

Lykamei returns the hug for a bit, suddenly floats through the angelic maid, hugs her from behind to take full advantage of the soft wings, then says "that's better. No more crying from you. Like Yuyuko said 'Youmu, if you cry too much, the food becomes bitter'."

The angelic maid chuckles weakly, knowing well what those words really meant, but she decides to just enjoy the gentle attention her wings are getting, and not explain that to the little ghost.

Slow, rhythmic thumps on the floor get Rika's attention, and from the scent she knows it's Reimu that's walking to her, so she prepares a smile to greet her mistress, but frowns upon looking at her. "M-my lady, what's wrong?"

Reimu's face looks a bit strained, her complexion looks dull, her lips look a bit pale, her eyes look bloodshot and slightly swollen, and after a sigh, she simply drops on her butt next to Rika, making the wooden floor shake.

She looks at her maid, forces a smile, and weakly says "Rika-chan, I feel a little tired and cold. Please get me some... *sigh* sleep."

"MY LADY!"

The shrine maiden falls on her maid's lap, and quickly starts to snore, sneezes softly, then moans and mumbles "if only... soup was more... with sake."

The angelic maid sighs, looks at Lykamei and says "she's just got a cold," then from the trees, Aya exclaims "that explains why she's been so mellow today," before said crow tengu lands in front of the maid.

Mima appears out of nowhere, smiling and waving at the maid, and says "what a weak little human. Let's take her inside," then Tenshi surprises even Rika after she walks out of Reimu's room with Suzaku on her shoulder, and says "her futon's ready. I placed a warming sheet there too. It'll help her heal quicker."

She notices the surprised stares from everyone, then blushes with embarrassment and asks "wh-what? I'm not some heartless bitch, you know. I _AM_ a celestial after all."

"With the way you behave sometimes, it makes us wonder," says a girl's voice coming from the roof, followed quickly by a somersaulting figure with horns that lands right behind Mima.

Suika Ibuki, has long orange hair that is adorned with a red ribbon and tied at the bottom with a chained shackle, red eyes, two large brown horns, one adorned with a blue ribbon, and wears a tattered pink blouse with the sleeves torn off, a long purple skirt, chained shackles on her wrist and belt, and at the end of each chain is either a triangle, an orb, and a square.

Tenshi just sighs at the appearance of the little oni, while said girl exclaims "alright everyone, while you take care of Reimu, I'll take on her shrine maiden duties for a bit. Whataya say!"

Aya smiles as she lifts her camera, and asks "can I take pictures?"

"Nope," bluntly replies the little drunkard.

The tengu, evil spirit, the dark ghost, and even the celestial give her a thumbs down sign and say "**bad idea!**"

* * *

Meanwhile, above the foggy Gensokyo's skies, Kasen grabs Ail by the hips, easily lifts him up, then tosses him forward, making him scream complaints and curses.

His disastrous landing is followed by three rolls on the snow, then breaking through a thin sheet of ice that was covering a cave entrance, where he finally crashes to a stop on his butt against a blunt rock.

Even with the pain on his lower spine as he groans and struggles to lift himself up, he glowers at Kasen, who waits for him to lift his head and monotonously say "go to Chireiden!"

The dragon takes off with the hermit, and quickly vanishes behind the thick foggy mist, while the dense boy grunts and rubs himself as he stands up.

"What the hell is her problem?" he asks himself while still glowering toward the girl's last seen trajectory. "She could have just told me to jump off or something."

Resigning to his fate, he sighs and looks at his surroundings, then places his hand on his hair while shaking his head and saying to himself "might as well keep going. Hmm; I wonder how are Orin and Satori [_Heh, you'd be surprised_] doing?"

The cave he is in is very humid and dark, the air inside feels heavy, and the rocks on the bottom give the impression that they are about to roll free at any second.

Feeling comfort in this familiar place, he starts walking toward the depths of the cave, then suddenly jumps back and shoots a pair of magic water orbs toward the ceiling.

A cherry brown bucket falls from the ceiling surrounded by a pair of large will-o-wisps, but the little fireballs fizzle and the bucket yelps when the boy's water bullets hit them, sending said bucket flying several feet into the cave.

As a little girl grunts with each of three bounces the bucket makes upon hitting the solid floor, the boy casually says "I thought we agreed on no more surprise attacks, Kisume!"

Kisume has dark teal hair she ties to twin pigtails with white beads, dark teal eyes, and wears a simple, but dirty white robe.

She is cannoned out of her bucket after the thing gets stuck between rocks, and she crashes to a stop on the rock-hard ground, where she immediately whimpers while curling up into a ball.

Noticing her reaction, Ail sighs as he combs his hair back with his hands, and says "gee, sorry Kisume. I didn't mean to scare you like that, but it's your own fault for surprising me like that."

He walks closer, making her try and back away with erratic movements from her thin, bare legs while whimpering and crying in terror, and noticing this behavior the boy stops his advance.

"H-hey, Kisume, it's just me. It's Ail. Why are you [_Look at her left leg, fool._] so scared?" asks the boy with a genuine look of surprise in his face.

Listening to that voice in his head, he looks at the youkai's left leg, and quickly notices how the back of it seems to be missing its skin, and how behind the knee there is a black spot where a curse has been placed so that it affects her blood flow.

He gasps, whispers "Kisume, what happened? Let me help-;" and bends slightly as he makes his way to her.

"**NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!**"

A blonde girl with brown eyes, who ties her hair in a bun with a brown ribbon, and wears a brown dress that's poofy and tied with yellow ribbons at the bottom, and a long sleeved black shirt underneath, rushes over to Kisume and stands between her and Ail with her arms spread to the sides.

Her left eye is black and swollen shut, the right side of her head looks like it was recently struck with black magic, as even the hair there looks unnatural and sick, and though she puts on a brave face, the fear she expels can be felt by the boy.

Unable to bare what he is seeing, the dense boy takes a step forward with a desperate and sad look in his eyes as he softly asks "Yamame, what happened?"

The spider youkai yelps and takes a step back, her arms stiffen in front of herself as a shield, and her knees bend on their own as she unwillingly backs away, shivers with fear, and cries "stay away! Please stay away!"

Ail wants to help, but he realizes he is not wanted, and yet stays where he is and opens his mouth to speak "[_Forget it kid! Just move to the damned mansion. And don't worry. They won't DARE attack you from the back. I saw to that myself._]

The boy doesn't like that sinister voice in his mind, but his body is compelled to obey for reasons he can't understand, and finds himself hesitantly backing away, and cautiously walking around the two youkai.

As soon as he is sure he's clear, Anilan walks more casually deeper into the cave, takes flight after he's sure he's safe to do so, then says "I don't know who you are, but I don't like you one bit. And what did you mean about 'seeing to that yourself'? What did you do, whoever you are?"

[_That is not your fucking concern at the moment! Your concern is Chireiden! You keep going there and don't stop unless the oni gets in your way. Tch! She's the only bitch in here that gives me trouble!_]

An image of Petal, a young-looking girl with short black hair that has a white stripe in the middle and is adorned with a blue plaid bow at the back, sparkly navy-blue eyes, a triangular green stone on the chest, and black wings, appears right in front of Ail's mind.

She wears a blue plaid overall dress with a pink shirt underneath, black knee-high boots, and wears a white cape with the image of a bright sunny day sky on its underside, and has a very innocent look on her face.

The boy loses his breath and shivers with fear after the image disappears, then gulps and asks "what... are you planning? What do you want from Petal?"

[_Ahh, you saw that. Well, that's none of your concern. You just keep flying, and keep your damned mouth shut!_]

Ail wants nothing more than to stop and turn around now, but the pull to the mansion is as strong as the first time he entered Gensokyo.

Nostalgia fills him for a moment as he remembers imagining magical bullets, and how they would affect youkai even though they didn't materialize physically, and how he used that silly imagination of his to scare Kisume and Yamame the first time he met them.

He now dreads what's coming up ahead even more, but his body wants him to continue on his way, and as he begins his descent through the hole leading to the Ancient City, he says to himself "I have such a bad feeling about this."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Moriya Shrine, a shrine at the top of the Youkai Mountain, two little girls are playing with danmaku above the semi-frozen lake waters behind the shrine's buildings, while a tall woman and a shrine maiden watch the battle from the shores.

The tall woman is Kanako Yasaka, who has bushy blue hair she adorns with a rope that has tiny maple leaves, red eyes, and wears a red shirt with long white sleeves, a long dark-red skirt with a light-red flowers design all around the bottom, has rope adorning her neck, as well as holding a round mirror that rests on her chest, and has a rope circle shimenawa with streamers seemingly floating over her back.

To her side is Sanae Kochiya, who has long and wavy light-green hair she adorns with a frog clip and a snake curl on the left side, green eyes, and wears a white shirt with detached sleeves, and a long blue skirt.

The shrine maiden in white and blue sighs, then sadly comments "and she's at it again. She even challenged _me_ earlier in the morning; took some time to get her off my back so that I could get back to my work."

The goddess raises her sight to the two girls having the danmaku battle, doesn't even squint her eyes as a strong explosion brighten the already bright and snowy day, and calmly says "at least the little one has plenty energy to burn. She's become quite nimble too."

Sanae shields her eyes form the consecutive bright explosions, and then says "aren't you worried? This all started when we all felt Ail's presence the other day. Maybe she needs to talk to someone about it."

Kanako grins and chuckles, then excitedly says "oh no, not at all. It's quite amusing for me to fight Suwako when she's being so overly energetic like this."

"So that's how you want to play!?" exclaims a little girl at the distance, which causes both shrine maiden and goddess sigh and say "**not again...**"

Flying just above the sacred logs that rest on the lake is Budou, a child-like bat youkai with long teal hair, purple eyes without pupils, and large brown bat wings that are as large and wide as her body, nimbly moves left to avoid a stream of blue lasers, then shouts "big sister is gonna get it now!"

She wears a light-brown dress with a teal band around her waist she ties into a ribbon at the back, adorns the left side of her head with a white bow that has black borders, and the pink socks she usually wears on her clawed feet are currently floating on the cold lake water.

Suwako Moriya, who has short blonde hair she ties with red string at the sides of her face, grey eyes, and wears a straw hat with bulgy blinking eyes, a purplish-blue dress with dancing frogs in front and long white sleeves, and is currently swinging three glowing yellow rings around her left forearm, grins mischievously at the bat youkai and says "come and show me what you got!"

She flies just above one of the many sacred logs, and is shaking her hips in a taunting manner.

The little girl grins back as she holds a light-green glowing spell card, flies higher up into the air until child-like goddess looks impressed by her, and declares "Sound Waves, Unheard Barrage!"

She starts flying left and right at a rapid pace, and as her light-green petal-shaped bullets flutter rapidly toward the goddess the sound all around the lake seems to get absorbed by Budou herself.

Kero-chan frowns when her ears feel an odd pressure, feels disoriented after all sound becomes mute, and ends with a burned calf after the little bat's danmaku suddenly homes in on her.

Suwako has to somehow fly between the gaps of the bullet rain in order to avoid the homing shots that break from the formation at random, and while she does, the maddening silence makes her feel anxious, raising her tension and making her movements more stiff.

She can see Sanae speaking, even though no sound can be heart, and Kanako constantly shouting back with a confused look.

This makes Suwako laugh and lose all her concentration, but now that she's so relaxed, she manages to move with enough agility to fly circles around Budou's bullets.

As soon as the first wave is over, some sound returns, but the next wave showers on the froggy goddess and mutes the sounds again, but not before the blonde manages to throw the three rings up to the air, and catches the little bat youkai by surprise when she flies left.

Budou's spell card cancels immediately after the rings trap her like tight rope and explode, sound returns just as she finishes screaming, and now Sanae calls out to the bat youkai when she sees the little teal haired girl falling head-first to the cold lake water below.

Phredia, a hand-sized elf fairy with long blonde hair she adorns with a red ribbon, and wears the dark blue dress gifted to her by Alice, which is making her look like a pointy-eared version of Shanghai, flies out of the little bat's chest, waves her hands around as if leading an orchestra, and magically holds the little girl in mid air as she takes her over to the worried shrine maiden.

Sanae eagerly grabs the weak little, air-floating bat girl, while Suwako shouts "aww, come on Budou! I didn't hit you _that_ hard!"

The green haired girl glowers at her ancestor and angrily shouts "be more careful next time! She's still a very young child!"

Budou smiles as she weakly sighs, then manages to say "that was fun," before placing her face on the maiden's well-endowed chest and quickly falls asleep.

The blonde goddess clicks her tongue, dives to the lake and lands on the water, as if landing on solid ground, picks up the wet pink socks, and with energetic frog-hops, she makes her way towards the shore.

Kanako chuckles as Suwako begins to hop in place, like some hyperactive child, and says "your next round is with me, you hyper brat!"

Kero-chan sticks out her tongue and hops around in circles while playfully saying "at least my hair doesn't look like gramma's bloomers!"

This comment causes Sanae to lose her composure and laugh hysterically, while a giant red vein pulsates on the blue haired goddess' forehead.

The shrine maiden quickly calms down, and with a more serious tone she asks "but Moria-sama, aren't you concerned? You've been acting so strange ever since that day. Perhaps you need some rest."

"Don't be silly, silly girl!" exclaims the childish goddess as she hand-stands and hops with her hands, exposing her cute pink frog-motif panties to the sky.

"You should all be glad I'm like this! That means I'm happy. And if I'm happy, Budou's happy, and we can have danmaku battles EVERY SINGLE DA-YARG!"

Kanako grips her rival's foot and pushes her down on the ground, and with an annoyed look on her face she says "show some decency you pervert!"

Suwako grabs Kanako by her ankles, pulls with all her might, causes them both to spin in mid air, and after falling on top of her friend and rival, she bites on the woman's calf, making her cry out in pain, then shouts "you're just jealous 'cuz I'm cute, granny!"

The blue haired goddess with tears of pain dangling under her eyes takes flight and shouts "you and me, ancient wart! Three cards! NOW!"

The forggy goddess' mischievous grin becomes dark as she coldly whispers "excellent. I'll take you down with two," then she takes off to the air, leaving Sanae and Phredia face palming, while the sleeping Budou moans and rubs her little face on Sanae's comfortably ample chest.

* * *

Meanwhile, deep beneath the Youkai Mountain, Ail stands at the end of a large bridge with red rails, and gazes with fright upon two threatening blonde girls.

The short one is Parsee Mizuhashi, who has short wavy hair, green eyes, pointy ears, and wears a brown dress with a blue bottom over a black shirt and a black skirt, a pair of white arm socks, a pink sash around her waist, and a pink scarf around her neck.

The towering blonde is Yuugi Hoshiguma, who has long hair, red eyes, a large red horn growing on her forehead, and wears a white, short sleeved shirt with red trims on all the borders, a semi-transparent blue skirt with red trims and highlights, and wears shackles with broken chains around her wrists and ankles.

Both girls throw highly poisonous glares at the boy as he slowly walks closer to them, then the large oni stands in the way, making him stop, punches her left hand strongly enough to make a loud bang, and in a dangerously low and cold tone, she asks "_what_! in the name of your damned hell are you doing here, _Ail_?"

He glances from one girl to the next, notices how their eyes start to glow, and understand he won't get out of that place without a fight, and as he tries to think of some manner of escape, he can hear that evil voice inside his mind laughing heartily at his predicament.

Meanwhile, at the top of the mountain, the coldly serene Suwako looks down the heavy mist that's covering Gensokyo, lifts her hat just slightly, then coldly says "he's close. Too close for comfort."

She turns around, claps her hands together, then suddenly plunges under the stone path and rapidly moves back toward the shrine.

* * *

At the Hakurei Shrine, Rika kneels beside her mistress and applies a cold wet towel on her forehead, then softly says "don't worry, my lady. I'll have you all better before you know it."

Tenshi, who kneels at the other side of the bedridden shrine maiden, watches in silence, showing some concern for the sick human, then moves the heated covers slightly so that they completely cover the shrine maiden's chest.

Reimu opens her eyes just slightly, smiles at the celestial, then her angelic maid, moans "thank you" softly, then closes her eyes again.

Outside the shrine, Suika, whom wears a small version of Reimu's shrine maiden outfit, is holding her gohei with both hands as she swings it above her head, while Aya flies just above her pleading "come on, just one picture! Only one and I'll leave you alone, I promise!"

"I already said NO!" furiously replies the little oni, who feels she desperately needs a drink. She hates being sober, after all.

At the same time, at the kitchen, Mima bends over slightly on top of one of the counters and holds the side of her head with one hand as though in pain, and while she recovers from the sudden shock, Suzaku flies next to her and asks "_is he trying it again?_"

The evil spirit's eyes strain as she fights to regain composure, and with some strain in her voice she replies "yes. He... he's scared. He's wanting to escape something. His chest hurts."

She finally relaxes, takes a few hard breaths, even though she really doesn't need them, and then says "I'm going to have to have another word with those two. Something feels very strange. Our minds are not supposed to link while he's in there."

The vermilion bird nods once, then says "_to think he almost made that world into our reality._"

"That's not important right now," replies the green haired woman more calmly. "Something is straining his mind and spirit; something that shouldn't be. But what?"

As she ponders on this puzzle, she wonders if it was a mistake to get herself out of the task of caring for Ail while he is in that alternate world.

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Budou, Phredia, Lykamei, Julia, Petal, and the evil black cat were created by Willie G.R.

Budou's spell card: "Sound Waves, Unheard Barrage", was created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami and Suzaku were created by Snapshot 2010

JUL 12 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Sorry this took so long to post. Real life reared its grotesque face again and wouldn't let me focus on writing. Not only that, but when I finally had free time again, I lost all motivation; hasn't been a good time for me. Oh well, with that complaining aside, I hope I am back to updating more regularly, as I too would love to see how this story will look like when finished.**

**Oh, and don't worry. Even though so many funny things happened in this chapter, that doesn't mean there's going to be no humor on the next. Sadly, it DOES mean the next one will be a bit more serious, especially... well, I won't say, or I'll just be teasing and spoiling.**

* * *

Satori: Yes. And seeing as you are taking Ail to my home in that alternate world, I have to admit I am a bit anxious.

Me: Why? Can't you just read my mind and see what I'm thinking?

Satori: But your mind is so... hyper! In fact, you still haven't decided how exactly will the plot progress!

Me: It's fun to think.

Satori: AAH! You pervert! I'm telling Patchouli!

Me: You wouldn't DARE!

*Satori and Willie end up wrestling on the ground, just as Patchouli comes in for some coffee.*

Patchouli: *Stare* you two are disgusting. Get a room already.

Me & Satori: WE'RE NOT DOING **THAT!** WE'RE FIGHTING!

Patchouli: *Waves dismissively while blushing lightly.* Yes, yes. That's the same excuse I use whenever I'm caught with Koakuma.

Me: *Shock-faced blushing and nosebleeding.*

Satori: *Totally shocked and blushing fiercely.*


	6. Chapter 6

NOTES: Sorry for the extreme delay. Been dealing with some stuff. Anyway, enjoy the chapter, and don't be fooled by NegaAil. Also, after this chapter, things should get a little more hectic for Ail, plus, if I do this right, things should get enjoyably confusing.

WARNING! Strong language ahead!

Legend: [_i_] = a sudden thought between the dialogue, or Ail/NegaAil talking to the one in control of Ail's body.

Jan 3 2013 - This chapter had a few paragraphs rewritten, some pretty horrible mistakes fixed, and now I am playing Mario Bros U and Assassin's Creed 3 on Wii U, instead of KH3D.

* * *

It is midday now, and at the snowing Ancient City at the underground caves, Ail is facing off against one very angry oni, and a glaring green-eyed youkai of jealousy.

"It's almost lunchtime, I'm famished, but I'll _gladly_ make some time to beat your disgusting face inwards, Ail!"

Yuugi's threatens Anilan as she punches her hand, making sure to send a most unwelcoming vibe by adding a strained hateful glare, while speaking in a terrifying low tone. "Or you could turn tail and get the heck out on your own. Not that I'll let you leave this place alive this time."

"Yuugi," whispers the boy in a begging tone. "I [_Save your breath. She HATES you, kid. Now you either fight, or run_] don't want any trouble. Please, just let me pass."

**BOOM!** Yuugi punches downward, and with the mere air pressure generated, she creates a large crater right in front of her feet while her fist remains just below her waist.

The dense one is frightened out of his wits; evidence on his paled face; and when she's sure she has him shaken, the oni declares "spell cards or not, you are now dead, Inmodo!"

The mentioning of spell cards quickly snaps the boy out of his fright, and he shouts "if I touch your horn, you'll let me pass!"

The woman's eyes stress for a few seconds as she stares with surprise at the boy, then slowly relaxes as she begins to chuckle, progressing quickly to laughing and slapping her thighs.

She takes a deep breath, looks at Ail, and says "that's rich. Just like the first time you came here. Well, I guess I can play a bit with you."

Red bolts of energy start crackling around her arms and legs, a fierce wind blows around her, and with a very vicious smile on her face she exclaims "just remember that last time I was merely playing! This time, I'm aiming for your _life_!"

"Why do _YOU_ get to have all the fun, Hoshiguma? I want to have some fun too," darkly hisses the jealousy youkai, whose eyes glow bright green as she flies above Yuugi with a spell card ready on her hand.

Ail's yelp becomes a huge choking croak when he hears those two are double-teaming him, and what little hope he may have had fades away when they both declare their spell cards at the same time.

"Feat of Strength, Storm on Mt. Ooe!"

"Malice Sign, Day 7 of the Midnight Anathema Ritual!"

The boy's eyes spread open wider at the beautifully terrifying sight of the many green and blue bullets, and magical rocks dancing around each other as they head toward him, creating what looks like a massive web with a dark ring around it, and an angry oni with a jealousy youkai at the center.

While Parsee's red shards fly in eight directions, Yuugi's large bullets and rocks fly in a diagonal circle around herself and her blonde ally, as if being moved by a powerful storm that appears to be spreading straight at him.

[_MOVE YOU DAMNED IDIOT!_]

NegaAil's outburst snaps the boy out of his terrified state, helping him see huge gaps between the many bright bullets and dangerous rocks after he kicks off the ground and remains five feet off the ground.

Yuugi's massive bullets crash against Parsee's red shards, causing those bullets to burst and spread back as blue bubbles to them, giving Ail the edge he needs to win, however, the oni is taking on the jealousy girl's bullets like mosquito bites, and the short blonde is using that oni as a shield.

Not only that, but the bullets from behind them crash and burst against the ceiling and magical rocks, and are slowly moving to the front, which means Anilan is about to run out of space very soon.

"That's it, _Ail_! You won't get out of here alive," declares Yuugi, to which Parsee reacts to by kicking her ally on the back, and complaining "how can you be so damned confident? It's _MY_ bullets that are going to hit him, so it is _ME_ who should be gloating!"

The blonde woman grabs the girl by the scarf, pulls her close to her face, and angrily says "not now, Parsee! We beat him first, _AND THEN_ you can be jealous all you want!"

While Ail struggles with his body movements to keep up with the crazy number of rocks and bullets, his frightened mind keeps running bad end scenarios; where both rocks and bullets tear holes on his skin; and such thoughts makes his movements more stiff as his nervousness rises.

"_This is unlike the first time we battled! The first time I met Yuugi, the amount of rocks and bullets was less than half of these. _[_YOU STUPID IDIOT, SHOOOOOT!_] _Now it's like they are raining on me! What can I do now? However am I going to get close enough to her horn!?_"

His right foot gets grazed by one of the rocks just as Parsee's bullets reach him, and feeling desperate in the situation, he follows the commands from that questionable entity inside his mind, and shoots his attackers with exploding focused bullets.

The jealous green-eyed girl yelps and moves, but her spell continues, while the oni woman winces after those bullets explode on her, yet she casually says "you'll have to do much better than that, Ail!"

The dense boy is having a hard time moving around with Parsee's bubbles in such a tight formation, mixing in with the angry oni's rocks and bullets, which are great in numbers, and it is now just a matter of time before he's hit, and hard.

"Yuugi," He calls out in desperation. "I swear, I don't know what I did to make you so mad! Please, PLEASE! You have to believe me!"

"**SHUT IT!**"

Yuugi's outburst causes the air to tremble and all the bullets in the air to stop and shake in place, and before everything settles again she shouts "you _LIED_ to me about your intentions last time, you _lied_ to me about Satori, you lied to me about the little raven, the kasha, the hell raven! Everything you said was a **_lie!_** I trusted you, and you betrayed me! I'll never believe a word from you again!"

The rocks and the bullets start moving again, catching the hurt and shocked Ail off guard, but feeling more hurt by Yuugi's words than the burns from the danmaku, he's going to let the rocks hit him.

He feels a soft hand grip his from behind; it pulls him back, away from the bullets and rocks, and now that his face is pressed against Mugetsu's, she smiles and loudly asks "hey Ail, glad I could find you! Could you tell me if this dress makes my butt look big?"

The boy, Parsee and even Yuugi herself can't help but stare in complete disappointment and shock at the newcomer, and the surprise goes as far as to causing the two spell cards to cancel out on their own.

The blonde in maid's dress glances from the brown haired boy, to the tall blonde, then to the short blonde, then looks back at Ail, raises a shaking fist while clenching her teeth, and says "so it looks _that_ big? Dammit, that Kana bitch was right!"

* * *

Ail grabs Mugetsu by the shoulders and pulls her oblivious self away from a barrage of bullets, then exclaims "I need your help!"

The blonde in a maid's getup looks away with a frown and mutters "I don't wanna. You said I have a big butt."

"WOULD YOU FORGET ABOUT THAT NOW!" desperately shouts the boy while shaking the dream demon. "I need to touch that oni's horn, or else she is going to kill me!"

He lets the girl go, notices her reluctance to help, then sighs and says "your butt looks FINE in that dress, so stop thinking about that, and help me!"

She gives him a hug while cooing and dancing with him in the air; coincidentally dodging bullets as she twirls around with him, then stops and says "I knew it! Thank you Ail! ...So what can I do to help, huh?"

He stares with annoyance at the blonde dream demon, points at the furious Yuugi's horn with his thumb, and says "that horn. I need to touch it, or I'll die."

She smiles, giggles while smirking naughtily, and then says "ooh, so you need to get horny."

Anilan raises an eyebrow as his imagination runs wild, and now he sees himself with eight white and red horns growing on all sides of his head.

The girl grabs the stunned boy and pulls him up with herself, saving him from a massive boulder that destroys some of the stone spikes under Parsee's bridge behind them, and then she looks into his eyes.

She holds her nose as blood starts spilling out like a jet-stream and says "oh my DREAMS! You are so CUTE when you're being stupid! I think I'll fight that woman of yours for your company!"

The boy snaps out of his imaginary world, gasps at the sight of the bleeding dream demon, and exclaims "oh no! You got hit! [_Another cutie is after me? That's it; I'm taking this body... Dammit, I can't yet!_] I'm so sorry!"

More blood jets out of the girl's nose as she squeals, then shouts "STOP BEING SO CUTE! YOU'RE GOING TO KILL ME!"

"**HEY!**" Yuugi's thunderous voice turns Ail's and the blood-stained Mugetsu's attention back to the fight just in time for them to avoid a ridiculously large boulder from crushing them, then the oni finishes "we're in the middle of a fight here! Be more serious, and stop it with the flirting, you lecher!"

"I am _NOT_ flirting!" shouts the boy.

"I am~," naughtily coos the girl while wiping the blood from under her nose with a napkin.

Parsee and Yuugi look at each other; the jealousy youkai slightly higher in the air than the oni; then both nod and pull out a spell card each.

The jealousy youkai grins with mischievous malice as she sinisterly declares "Grandfather Cherry Blossom, Shiro's Ashes!"

Parsee's body glows pink for a moment as ten large green orbs spread out in all directions, leaving behind pink flowers that rapidly wilt, and as their leaves fall, they cover a great deal of space in a short amount of time.

At the same time, the green-eyed blonde herself shoots light-green orbs that spread in eight directions.

A second after Parsee finishes showing off, Yuugi lifts her spell card and darkly declares "Light Oni, Adamant Helix!"

Ail and Mugetsu shudder when the heat emanating from Yuugi's hand reaches them twelve feet away, then both yelp and start to fly when they see that light on the oni's hand extends a massive arm that starts to move around clockwise.

They find themselves trapped between the two active spells, and out of despair, Ail shouts at Mugetsu "use your spell cards!", then lifts his own and declares "Blast Sign, Expansion that Soothes."

Just before the twelve orange orbs fly around the boy's body, the blonde demon clings on him, giggles playfully, then says "I'll use mine in a bit. Just don't crash~"

By some unknown miracle, Ail's bullets break through the oni's insanely powerful attack, though it costs him six of those protective bullets, which drain the energy from the attack and gives it to him and the clinging girl.

What's more, now that Yuugi's attack has finished its first revolution, Parsee's flower petals catch fire, and rain down on the duo as hot fireballs.

The boy gasps, looks around for a way out, and then shouts "hey Parsee, Yuugi's attack is better than yours. She's making fun of how much you suck!"

"**WHAT!?**"

The jealous girl launches herself at the oni, grips her stone-like, yet soft cheeks, and tries to stretch them while furiously saying "how DARE YOU! My danmaku is _twice_ the cheap crap _you're_ shooting!"

"Darn it Parsee, what the hell do you think you are doing!?" shouts Yuugi as she tries to pull the girl away with just one hand, while continuing to maintain her attack active.

This distraction saves Ail's remaining rotating orbs from being destroyed as the oni's attack stream flickers momentarily while the blonde woman struggles with her questionable partner.

"You dare mock me by using more power than me!? SUFFER!"

"For the last time, Parsee, get off, or I'm **_breaking_** **your arms off**!"

As the girls argue and struggle, Ail and Mugetsu manage to get through the flaming petals and get behind the struggling girls.

[_Do it! Run away! She won't chase you. She's too, eheheh, busy._]

Ignoring the voice of NegaAil, Anilan really does think of running away, but then thinks Yuugi might chase after him, and is considering whether to or not to go and just touch her horn while she's still distracted.

Before he can make his choice, Mugetsu grips his butt, lift him up, shivers while groping his chest above herself, and ignoring the complaints from the fiercely blushing boy, she says "here's _my_ spell card! Grapple Sign, Throwing the Cute Idiot!"

Ail's body is filled with a strange pastel-yellow light, and just as he screams "h-hey! Stop touching me theeeeeeeerrreee~", the perverted dream demon throws him, giggles, and says "enjoy your horn, cutie~."

Yuugi looks back toward the screaming boy, giving him the chance to grab on to her horn, and just like that, she cancels her spell card, Parsee cancels hers after an obscene curse, and the oni just stares.

The blonde oni closes her eyes as she clenches her teeth, and then begrudgingly grumbles "go. You touched my horn again. You won. But rest assured, Anilan Inmodo _Leuch_, that if you harm those girls again, no damned spell card rule is going to save you. _This_ is my promise to you."

Ail is still stunned, and hasn't fully realized what has happened, however, to his luck, Mugetsu grabs his arms from behind again, and takes him away from the increasingly angering oni, and then she softly says "you won, cutie, now let's go."

"She said 'harm the girls _again_'." He speaks softly, though loud enough for the blonde to hear him, then he looks up at her and asks "Mugetsu, do... you know anything about this?"

The girl smiles with a sigh, then says "it'll probably be more fun for me to watch you find out on your own, so I won't say," then winks at him while giggling playfully.

* * *

Meanwhile, at Chireiden; also known as The Palace of the Earth Spirits; Rin Kaenbyou, also known as Orin, makes her eager way to the mansion's last back rooms.

She is in her youkai form, with long red hair she makes into braids on the sides and ties with black ribbons, a pair of black cat ears above human ears, dark red eyes, and wears a black and green dress.

She reaches a white door with a gold knob, opens it up with a bang, and cheerfully shouts "LUNCH TIME, SATORI-SAMA~!"

Inside the room, at a wooden round desk at the back of the room filled with many bookshelves is Satori Komeiji, who yelps in surprise and scratches her book with the pen she was using, staining the blank page in the process.

The girl has short violet hair she adorns with a red headband, violet eyes, wears a light-blue shirt with yellow heart-shaped buttons, a light rose skirt with pink rose patterns on the bottom, and has a red third eye floating in front of her chest by means of red and yellow strings that hold it and attach to her body.

After recovering from the initial scare, the mind-reader places her hand on her chest, and after a sigh she softly says "Orin. I have asked you time and time again; please don't disturb me while I'm in this room."

The kasha lowers her cat ears and puts on a very sad expression as she says "I'm sorry, Satori-sama," but quickly perks up and starts to drool, then says "but it's lunch time! We're hungry, nya~"

Satori sighs in defeat after wiping the excess ink from the blank page she was writing on with a thick blue towel, slips her red slippers on, and gets up while saying "it can't be helped then. Come on, let's go."

As they reach the white door to exit the room, the mind-reader asks "what would you like to eat?" while a stalking figure slithers its way through the bookshelves on its way to the girls.

"Fish meat Yakisobaaaaa~" exclaims the cat girl with excitement, while the lurking figure runs up to the violet haired girl and flips her skirt, making her choke on her yelp while her white panties are exposed.

"YES! Today's pair are white! Almost transparent!" exclaims Koishi Komeiji with a bit of drool dribbling down the corner of her mouth.

She has wavy greenish-grey hair that reaches her shoulders blades, dark-green eyes, and wears a round black hat with a yellow ribbon, a yellow shirt with light-blue diamond-shaped buttons, a dark- green skirt with light-green roses on the bottom, and has her closed, blue third eye floating in front of her chest, held by indigo and dark blue strings that connect to her body.

The blushing girl holds her skirt down while angrily shouting "stop doing that, Koishi! What will others think?"

The little sister sticks out her tongue while looking upward and stretching her arms above her head, and says "oh, I don't know. I love you!"

The flushed mind-reader sighs, painfully aware that her cat girl is having daydreams with her, and then says "Koishi, if you keep this up, I'll leave you without lunch. And Orin, I know what you're thinking."

"I know~" purrs the kasha, her eyes turning more feral as her steaming face turns redder.

"Ok, so let's have lunch right away," cheerfully exclaims Satori, turning Orin's mind away from any more lewd fantasies, and getting Koishi to hug her from behind while pushing her out the door.

The walk to the kitchen is an uneventful one, and so they make it there quickly, laughing at one of Rin's jokes at Utsuho's expense as they walk through the north-side door.

They all become quiet when they hear noises coming from the courtyard just two doors away, and quickly recognize the voices of one cheering Petal, and one enthusiastic Okuu.

"Alright Petal-chan, now it's my turn to shoot!"

"Momkuu cool! Flashy-flashy **boom**~! Ehehehe!"

Even Koishi shares in the worried stares Orin and Satori are giving, and then all three run outside, shouting for Okuu to stop.

Outside, at the snow-covered courtyard, Petal is standing by the mansion's porch to the left of the hell raven, waving and cheering enthusiastically.

Utsuho Reiuji, also known as Okuu, has a messy long dark-brown hair, black wings that are covered with a white cape that looks like it has space on its underside, dark-red eyes, and wears a short-sleeved white shirt with the red eye of Yatagarasu on the center, a green skirt that reaches her knees, her right foot is encased in grey congealed material, her left foot is surrounded by atoms, and she has a large brown canon on her right arm.

She points the canon at a dummy Reimu target that's set close to the mansion, smiles at the little girl on the porch, and says "alright, get ready for some bright lights!"

The tip of the canon ignites with an orange orb of light, the canon itself starts to buzz, and now the hell raven holds the upper side of her canon with her left hand.

Petal cheers and giggles, the door to her right bursts open with a loud bang, and she looks at it with confusion as Satori, Orin and Koishi run outside and desperately shout "**_DON'T SHOOT, YOU IDIOT!_**"

"Explosions Sign, Giga Flare!"

"**_NOOOOOOO!_**"

The explosion caused by Okuu's careless demonstration rocks the snow right off the entire palace's roof, and the shockwave alone trails onward to the Ancient City, blowing and melting the snow everywhere in the underground world.

* * *

Ail and Mugetsu reach the snow-covered Chireiden; the boy now flying on his own by the dream demon's side; and after a silent moment of staring, the blonde in maid's clothing looks at the boy, and she asks "ok, seriously, I have to know. How the hell is it snowing underground? UN! DER! _GROUND_!?"

The boy shrugs while smiling, as he is unable to produce an answer, then he says "it is best not to question these things. Sometimes the answer can be more confusing than it's worth."

As he says this, he remembers the first time he had been turned into a miniature dog with golden-brown hair, tiny arms and legs, and black, large beady eyes.

He was taken to Eientei by Reimu herself, and he not only caused Eirin to nosebleed twice, but he also bit Kaguya on the ankle, though that almost cost him to become one of Eirin's test subjects.

His nostalgia trip is cut short by the annoying poking and pestering from Mugetsu, who smiles after getting his attention, then says "I'm sorry, you adorable little half-human, but I have something to tend to in here. Please take care, and take pictures of yourself if you start acting stupidly cute again."

"Eh?" The dense one raises his left eyebrow as he imagines himself in chibi-form tripping on a rock, or a twig, and somehow throwing a camera in the air and taking the picture of that moment, just so that a chibi-Mugetsu can be happy when she sees the pictures later on.

The real Mugetsu yelps and shrieks "KYAAAAHHHH! SO CUTE," while holding her bleeding nose and shivering in mid-air.

This gets Ail out of his thought bubble, but all he sees is the blonde flying away as fast as she can, while shouting "what a CUTE IDIOT! Darn it; DARN IT ALL! It's just not FAIR!"

As she flies farther into the darkness of the underground, he feels a cold chill slowly creeping into his heart.

[_Ahahahaha. It is now time to face the music, kid._]

That vile voice makes the chill even stronger, and for a moment, the dense boy feels like he lost control of his shaking limbs.

Still, he descends as he heads closer to the palace, and after landing right in front of the large entrance door he immediately notices their disrepair, the dust accumulating on the windows, and the sad and cold ambience surrounding the entire building.

Regardless, he moves forward, feeling a very strong push on the back of his head that's forcing him to do just what he's fearing; and his fears are there for good reasons, though he doesn't know.

The doors easily open, almost on their own, shrieking out loud as they do, and the moment he peeks his head in and opens his mouth to call [_Don't do that, you id-_], he gasps out loud, almost screams, and runs inside.

He drops on his knees in front of a purplish-red and violet set of vines, and almost out of breath, he softly, but desperately calls "Satori! What's the matter! Satori-san! Please say something! Don't be _dead_!"

His voice cracks and he despairs to the verge of tears as he says that last word.

Satori Komeiji lies on her back with her hands resting on her belly, her skin slightly bluish, and it looks as though she hasn't eaten any substantial food for a very long time.

The vines surrounding her are actually the strings that should hold her third eye, if she would still have it.

Ail breathes fast through his mouth as he looks left and right at Satori's body, and though some relief fills him when he sees her breathe once, he still wants to find her third eye.

[_Save your efforts, kid. I destroyed that thing!_]

A feral burst of rage suddenly takes the boy's head, yet he respects his youkai friend enough to walk away from her in order to whisper furiously without disturbing her. "You son of a bitch, what the _fuck_ did you do to her!? [_Don't blow a gasket, kid._] _HOW_... could you do this to her; to your _friend; MY FRIEND!_?"

[_The bitch wouldn't **listen** to me! She kept telling me my way would destroy Reimu! What the hell did she know!? Just because she could read my mind, she thought she knew everything about me! ...So I destroyed that third eye of hers. Heheh. Who's the smart one now, huh!?_]

Anilan grips his own chest so tight, the fabric on his shirt tears a bit, and in a murderous undertone, he says "whatever the hell you are, I am going to get you out of my body. And when I do, I am going to destroy everything that you are! THERE WON'T BE A SPIRIT LEFT FOR EIKI TO JUDGE!"

The boy turns around to look at Satori after hearing a little girl coo, and when he does, his eyes expand as he gazes upon Petal, who is cooing gently while helping the bluish-skinned satori girl up to her knees at a slow pace.

Ail's eyes turn red, and with that smooth, yet cold tone of voice, NegaAil softly calls "Petal. Petal, it's you..."

* * *

The evil boy rushes over to the little hell raven youkai, knocks the barely conscious Satori to the ground and off the little girl's arms, then gives her a tight hug while whispering "Petal, you sweet child!"

The little girl easily pushes the boy off herself, scowls innocently, points at the blue-skinned satori youkai, and with some effort, she says "you knock Satori-sama-love! M-meanie brute man!"

NegaAil desperately rushes to the little girl while on his knees, holds her by her shoulders, and in a desperate whisper he says "please, Petal, listen to me! Leave this dead place behind! [_You son of a- LEAVE HER ALONE!_] Come with me and Reimu! She will be the best mother you could ever dream of having, I swear! I'll be the best damned father I can be! Just, please, come with me!"

He can feel Ail trying to force himself to regain control of his body, but easily keeps him back, mostly out of the strength of his will because he's currently dealing with Petal.

Said girl slaps both hands off her shoulders, returns to pick Satori up, cooing with her as the purple haired girl stands up, and then silently makes her way into the mansion's inner rooms.

Before she's out of his reach, she turns her head to look into those red eyes, sighs while shaking her head, then grabs Satori's hand in order to guide her to the kitchen.

The vile boy starts to whimper, rapidly crawls toward the girls, reaches for the ex-mind-reader's hand, and lightly touches the back of it.

Satori reacts by opening her eyes wide as she looks at the offending fingers, traces her dull eyes up the violet sleeves of the boy's shirt until she sees his face, then she tries to run backwards, only to fall on the back of her head while kicking her legs, as if trying to run away.

She seems to be calling for someone, but her voice comes as a mere wail, a pant, or a whimper, and though she seems to be trying to form words, nothing makes any sense at all.

The red-eyed boy watches this with disgust, and stands to look down on the horrified youkai girl, but that's when tears start flowing out of his eyes. They return to the gold color they should be, and upon this, Satori slowly calms down and allows Petal to get close to her.

"You calm down, Sha-S-Satori-sama-love? Petal is happy." The little girl kneels next to the satori youkai, and gets her face closer to hers.

Ail watches with a broken heart as the little raven girl kisses Satori on the forehead as a mother would, coos sweetly as she picks the girl's hand, and after the pink haired girl is on her feet, both girls stare at Ail.

He lifts his right hand only slightly, and whispers "Satori. I have to heal you," while the girls turn around and quickly make their way to the kitchen.

The dense boy turns his gaze to the artificial vines where the ex-mind-reader was sleeping before, and above from where her head was resting is a beautiful white flower with three petals, each with a drawing. One is a blue triangle, another is green hexagon, and the third one is a red clover.

Satori's third eye hovers just above the flower as it is being healed, surrounded by sparkling mint-green and blue lights and sparks.

Ail's rage increases greatly when he sees that third eye had been broken in half by means of brute force, yet a smile breaks out of the corner of his mouth when he sees the energy patterns coming from the flower are helping that eye restore itself.

[_No you don't! Don't you dare, kid! DON'T YOU DARE!_]

NegaAil's threats fall on deaf ears, and Ail places his hand near the flower, and gives it a powerful boost of energy that returns the eye to a single-form state, though it's still going to take time for it to be functional again.

Satisfied with what he has done, Anilan sighs, lets his tears roll free, and with a cracked voice he says "in three more days she'll be back... not that it matters to you, you disgusting piece of shit. [_Whatever you do, you will fail. This world is mine, and mere setbacks like these can be undone in an instant._]"

The boy jumps left and avoids a wheel of fire, made out of evil spirits as its frame, then pushes himself backwards with his hands when they touch the ground so as to avoid a triple-clawed slash from the darkness.

He sweeps his left leg around, then hops away like a rabbit from a shower of evil spirits in the form of zombie fairies, opens a large blue barrier that surrounds him all the way over his head, and exclaims "Orin, stop it! I'm trying to help!"

The kasha jumps out of the shadows with her claws spread and her teeth bare on a feral face, but in her berserk state she merely crashes against the boy's barrier, yelps in pain when her fangs break as she is bounced off, then she runs away back into the darkness, but not before the boy notices her left tail has been cut in half, and cursed.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO ORIN!?" shouts Ail at his dark self, who simply chuckles mockingly.

He suddenly grabs his head and drops on his knees while holding his hair [_What the-? You're not supposed to remember that stuff!_]

Ail doubles over and stops himself from crashing his forehead on the ground because of his elbows, trembles as he holds his head tight, then furiously roars "Al-ALICE! What am I doing to Alice!?"

* * *

At the deepest level of the underground, where the heat should be intense enough to melt a youkai in an instant, Mugetsu, her older sister Gengetsu, and Kana the dream poltergeist, stand on the lava there as though it were solid ground, and seem to be as fresh as if the temperature was comfortable.

In front of them is a rotating fuchsia crystal the size of a house in height, and they keep staring at it with great interest.

"This is it," begins the blonde, wingless dream demon. "This is the catalyst that's controlling this world. We should be able to free him if we destroy it."

The blonde poltergeist in maid's outfit looks around her surroundings, and says "well, the dream is quite real, but the lack of heat here? This is kind of sloppy."

Gengetsu barks a command, getting Kana's attention back to the crystal, then Mugetsu strictly says "focus! This thing is what's keeping Ail trapped in here. Let's break it, and free him from the Yama's prison!"

The winged blonde looks at her little sister, and asks "imouto-chan, are you certain he was forced in here? He doesn't seem to have been forced you know."

The gloveless blonde maid scoffs, then says "pshaw sister! The Yama is evil. Of course she forced him. Now take your places ladies. He freed us, we free him! We'll be even now!"

The girls form a triangle around the large crystal, all three girls aim an arm above their heads, and point the other one toward their target, and all start summoning energy to themselves, and then they immediately send it forward as a yellowish-white beam straight at the crystal's center.

Meanwhile, inside Chireiden's foyer, Ail holds his head as the memories of the attack of NegaAil at Alice's house return to him full-blast.

"Alice!" he calls as his tears drip down his cheeks and on to the floor, all while he holds his head, feeling as though it could fall off if he lets it go.

[_Well, you remember that. Congratulations! You still have to finish your mission here! And don't think of going back, or I WILL take over your body again; and do THAT to Alice and her little girl again!_]

Everything suddenly stops. Ail stands up with his tears dried, his limbs steeled as with his resolve, and in a quick gesture, he extends his right hand away from himself, then uses all his strength to sink his claw-shaped fingers into the skin of his chest after a strong sweep.

[_WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? ARE YOU INSANE!?_]

Blood spills through his fingers as he pulls on his own skin, but then it stops flowing when a dark red shadow begins to rise out of the boy's chest.

He grunts out loud and shuts his eyes as he uses his strength to yank that shadow off, and after a breath of relief, he opens his eyes to meet with a translucent image of NegaAil.

Unlike himself, NegaAil combs his hair a little, and has this vile expression ever-present on his face, even when looking around confused.

Before that vile boy realizes what happened, Ail shakes his right arm a bit, his bracelet grows in a flash and recovers the lost symbols for Hakurei, Pandemonium, Bishamonten, Kanako, and Suwako, and in another instant he summons a buster blade made of light and swings it with all his might.

The evil boy finally realizes what has happened by the time the dense one has struck with his blade of light, and simply stares with a casual expression at his other self.

Ail glares back with a look of hatred and dread as he asks "what the hell?"

He swings that sword again with a mighty roar "NOOOOOOO! YOU MUST DIEEEEEEEEE!" The memories of Kisume being beaten with his very fists until she cried like a child, then cursing her with one of Reimu's tainted charms burns in his mind.

He feels heavy guilt for what happened to her, even though he didn't really do it, but the memory is too fresh and real.

His sword of light keeps going through NegaAil as if flowing through air, and with every swing he keeps getting tired, but also angrier.

He now sees himself beating Yamame on the face and head with a large sanctified rock, and this causes him to cry out in frustration, and his anger becomes worst when he sees himself gripping her chest with more than enough strength to break her bones while placing a tainted charm on the large wound on her head he, himself, just gave her.

He swings that sword one last time, using all his anger and hatred toward that monster before him, but like before, the blade merely goes through his translucent body as if cutting wind, and then Ail falls on the floor out of exhaustion.

While Ail breathes rapidly on the ground, exhausted after his rage outburst, NegaAil stands beside him with a smile, bends his knees, and tries to grab the boy by the neck, but his hand just goes through, like air.

He chuckles, then sinisterly whispers "I am impressed of the way you pulled me out of there kid, but while I'm out here, you can't harm me, and I can't harm you. So, no matter how badly you may want revenge, you just. can't. have it!"

The dense boy takes a deep breath, manages to speak between breaths "I will. find. a way," then, without warning, he shoots an odd electrical spark that looks like a bolt made out of glass, and after doing this he conceals NegaAil inside a large, thorny crystal ball.

Inside it, the vile boy's true form takes shape, and is now moving around the inside of the crystal prison in the form of a red spirit.

A satisfied smile crosses Ail's face as he slowly gets up to a sitting position, and while looking into the crystal, he says "just like you did to Shanghai, you damned bastard!"

He immediately takes his hand into his left pocket, takes the tiny crystal with Shanghai's soul in it, and breaks the tip off so that she may escape.

After the little soul is gone, the dense boy looks at the thorny crystal on the floor, then asks himself "how the hell did I even manage to do this?"

Meanwhile, atop the Youkai Mountain, at the Moriya Shrine, Suwako stands on the roof of the shrine with a serene expression as she looks around the thick mist.

She sighs, says "he went in deeper. Good. I won't have to do it," then waves her hands around her waist and her hips, and the ground start to rumble out loud.

The thickness of the mist covers whatever the cause of the rumbles may be, yet some silhouettes of large humanoid creatures can be seen melting rapidly into the ground.

* * *

*CRASH* "Take _THAT_, you youkai!"

Reimu's slurry, yet loud voice rumbles all the way to Suika and Aya at the front of the shrine, halting their little squabbling battle over whether or not pictures will be taken.

Inside the shrine maiden's room, Rika and Tenshi struggle with the girl as they try to keep her from getting off the futon again and go on a fever-induced-hallucination youkai hunt yet again.

Next to the celestial are shards of a large pot that used to contain some tea, and next to that is Reimu's old wooden gohei stabbed on the ground as if it were a sword.

"Guh! My lady, please stop! You are ill and need your rest!" pleas the angelic shrine maid as she flaps her wings to keep herself balanced while pushing the struggling maiden back into her futon.

"I knew getting soft on her was a bad idea! ARGH! Just stay _still_ you stupid human," argues the blue haired girl, annoyed at the fact that she chose a very bad moment to get all soft for Reimu's sake.

Reimu starts to sob and sniffle out loud, looks at her maid with teary and tired eyes, and says "but he's swinging, but nothing happens. *Sniffle* He's really trying!"

Rika raises her eyebrow in concern, and asks "who is swinging what, My Lady? What's happening?"

The shrine maiden stops her struggle, and Tenshi quickly places her hand on the sick girl's forehead.

Reimu's tears dry up as she starts to smile, then softly whispers "oh... pretty crystal. He. made... it."

As she falls asleep, the shrine maid looks with surprise at her celestial friend, sighs with relief, and asks "how did you do it? I tried Patchouli's sleeping spell from the start, and it didn't work."

Tenshi sighs, looks to the room's sliding doors, and then says "that's probably why mine worked so quickly. We just needed her to calm down a bit. Hmm... Maybe I overdid it, then."

"Alright Tenshi, that's enough," begins the maid in a steeled tone. "I know you and Miss Reimu don't get along, so tell me, why are you being so nice to her now!?"

The celestial girl starts to blush fiercely, hides her face from her angelic friend by looking to the floor, and softly says "be-because she's important to you, and..."

Her face normalizes as she slowly raises her head, and says "well, people keep saying I'm such a selfish brat. I guess I just want to prove them wrong."

The angel-winged maid is now embracing the celestial girl from behind in her Soraogan mode, and after a sweet coo that turns the blue haired girl's cheeks pink, she says "that's very sweet of you, Tenshi. But aren't you still being selfish, if that is your reason for caring for Miss Reimu~?"

The blissful celestial's lips become jagged when her wrong logic is spread out in front of her so bluntly, but then she feels those heavenly-soft feathers rubbing her cheeks and that soft and round chest pressing against her back, and then her lips stretch into a wide and blissful smile as she drops back on Rika's lap.

The angelic girl giggles and smiles dearly at her while still rubbing her cheeks with those soft feathers, then sweetly and softly says "it's alright Momoko-chan. You don't need to lie to me. I know you like her too."

Tenshi sighs as all the tension she had leaves her celestial body, then softly says "I saw her acting so weird; I got worried and followed her for a bit. She asked me to take care of you, and then we sat down, talked a little... I can't help but like her a little more."

Rika giggles as she gently scratches Tenshi's head, and softly says "you are a sweet and kind spirit, Momoko."

Meanwhile, at the Kitchen, Lykamei and Suzaku watch quietly as Mima finishes preparing and serving the meal she just finished cooking.

Her ghostly skin appears to be full of goose bumps, and every move she makes seems is taking great effort on her part.

At the same time, at the fake depths of Dream Hell, the dream demons and poltergeist continue their assault on the pink crystal, when Mugetsu declares "we've almost got it, girls! Just a bit more!"

The crystal cracks, it stops spinning, and starts to make a sound similar to that of a ship's foghorn, then Gengetsu shouts out loud "**sis! I think we should stop now!**"

The dream demon in the maid outfit's grin turns insane, and with that crazed expression on her face, she shouts "**no, it's good! We only stopped the cycle! Now we take out the dream!**"

Back at the Hakurei Shrine, Mima holds her right temple with the tip of her fingers and looks as though she's suffering from a headache.

She looks at the dark little girl and the vermilion bird, and in a soft tone of voice, as if struggling to speak, she says "Chick-err, I mean, Suzaku and Lykamei, please be a couple of dears and take this to Reimu's room."

"What's the matter?" asks the little ghost girl.

The red bird nods, then, so that all in the room can hear, she asks "_is it Ail again?_"

The green haired spirit nods twice, then says "listen to me, if you see me flying around outside, don't talk to me. Repeat these instructions to everyone..."

Before she can finish, she snarls and punches the counter in front of herself, making one loud bang, then finishes "until I can figure out what's happening to me, I'll be a little dangerous! Defense... mechanism. G-gotta go."

She speeds away from the shrine, holding her head with both hands as she flies to the storage house, then Lykamei sighs and says "that was weird. Like the time Yuyuko-sama got a stomach ache."

The vermilion bird stares silently at the little ghostly girl, then sighs and says "_come, let's take this to Rika-sama so we can tell them about Miss Mima._"

Lykamei nods, easily grabs two of the heavy trays with one hand each, then floats toward Reimu's room with ease, followed by the slightly surprised Suzaku, who can only take one tray with her.

* * *

At the underground palace, Ail runs for his life as a shower of red homing bullets keep exploding just behind his heels, leaving small craters on the floor.

He reaches a doorway leading to the rooms corridors, hides on the other side of it, and after the destructive bullets almost blast a hole to the other side of the wall, right where he is hiding, he shouts "Koishi, I swear, it's a mistake! I'm the good Ail! I want to help your sister, not harm her!"

A large green laser that buzzes through the doorway burns a hole on the ground to his left, then the girl shouts "I'm subconscious, not stupid, you whiny bitch! You're not getting near onee-chan again!"

There is a moment of silence; which isn't helping Ail's tension at all; and thinking foolishly, he believes the time to get out of hiding and attack is now.

"Say, why don't I have a little fun, and break this thorny crystal I took from your hand on your face." The hatred in her voice as she threatens the boy sends chills down his back, which cut all foolish thoughts of attack off, but then he remembers something and opens his eyes wide in shock.

After a quick gasp, he pokes the side of his head through the doorway and shouts "no, don't! There's an evil spirit in there! He'll possess me again if you free it!"

He finally gets a good look at Koishi, and now a new sense of fear sinks right into the depths of his heart.

The girl's third eye is open, but it's red and black inside, and seems to be secreting a golden substance that appears to bubble up with her rage, and she keeps throwing and catching the dangerous-looking crystal with her left hand.

Her smile becomes a vicious grin when she sees his eyes, and in a low, sinister, yet playful undertone, she says "I see you~"

Anilan isn't sure how, or when, but now he's being lifted above the youkai girl's black hat, and before he can realize what happened, Koishi throws him against the wall.

The boy recovers his bearing before crashing, flips and twists until he's facing down the floor and his feet are against the wall, bounces off it, then launches straight at the youkai girl.

He creates a silly, yet bright piko-hammer of light that's surrounded with magical water, and winds it up in mid flight, intending to knock the girl out quickly, but a large black and red blur jumps from the ground and strikes him under the chin, sending him on a backwards spin.

Orin lands in her youkai form on all fours next to Koishi, gets a pat on the head from the young satori, then snarls and hisses at Ail while Koishi says "good job, Orin. Now let's kill this son of a bitch before he hurts onee-chan again."

Ail chuckles as he gets back on his feet, and with tears dangling under his eyes, he says "well done, Orin-sis. I almost didn't see you running towards me."

"**_SHUT IT!_**" screams the kasha, bearing her large set of restored fangs as her feral face turns redder with rage.

Tears start to roll down her cheeks, she lets her sobs escape her, and she raises her clawed arms and waves them in front of herself as she screams "**you betrayed me! You tried _TO KILL ME!"_** She sobs "**you tried to kill Satori! You made her scream so much! _I HATE YOU!_**"

Those words sting the boy's very heart, making it feel as though it's being wrapped in barbed wire, but what comes next turns that wire into ice-cold thorns that burn him without mercy.

Both girls pull out a spell card each, and with hatred present in their faces, both fill them up with red energy before declaring them loudly and clearly.

"Rose Hell!"

"Apology, The Needles of Yore, and the Vengeful Spirits in Pain!"

The spell cards make a disturbingly loud sound when they activate as one, and now there are red and blue orbs in several circular patterns spreading towards Ail at a ridiculously fast pace, and these orbs erupt into red and blue roses that emanate enough heat to cook a limb on contact.

This attack mixes with Orin's thin red pin and blue orb bullets as if it were part of the original spell, and the boy quickly realizes there is just no way to dodge that, so he does the next best thing.

He creates a blue barrier that covers his sides and his front, and desperately shouts "You guys, just stop! I swear I'm not that evil thing that harmed you! I'm trying to help you! Please, let me prove myself!"

"Shut up," demands Koishi. Her eyes become unfocused, her grin becomes wicked and dangerous, and sinisterly says "a liar will die today, and after he dies, Satori-chan will feast on his flesh! She'll become good as new!"

Even though Koishi seems to have lost her mind, it's Orin's spell that intensifies greatly, and Ail's barrier starts to crack.

"SATORI'S EYE! Look at Satori's eye!" screams the boy with great despair behind his voice.

His barrier explodes and the deadly barrage of bullets pummel him until he's face-up on the ground, but then everything stops just before he loses his consciousness.

Koishi has her right arm in front of Rin's chest, pulls the thorny crystal out of her pocket, and whispers "wait. I want to break this on his face before we kill him."

She winds herself up as if she was a professional baseball player and says "this one's for you, Orin-chan!"

Just before the satori youkai throws that crystal, the kasha shivers with a strange and frightful sensation that comes from the item, then shouts "no, wait," and reaches for Koishi and the ball a second too late.

The young satori youkai swings that arm with the full force of her body; as if her muscles all suddenly exploded with energy; and squeals with a smile on her face as the thorny crystal ball leaves her arm, which, of course, crashes against the wall next to Ail, instead of his face as she intended.

The moment that prison shatters, NegaAil appears surrounded by a red cloud with his back turned to the two girls.

He twists his body around, smiles sinisterly at the two girls, and then dives straight into Ail's body.

Koishi's face returns to a more natural state, and even her third eye appears to normalize and close up a bit, while Orin stares at the boy with her mouth wide open, and her eyes bulging from the shock.

The satori looks at the kasha, giggles sweetly, points at the dense boy, and says "ah... So he was telling the truth."

The kasha gulps and nods at the same time, nervously says "yup. He was," then slaps her own cheeks when placing her hands on then, and exclaims "Oh crap, what have we done!?"

Ail stands up in a most unnatural manner, almost as if he slithers his way on to his feet, grins vilely at the two girls in front of him, summons a massive red orb that grows larger above his hand, then happily says "and now, I am going to make you regret your mistake."

He roars as he rushes toward the girls, who shriek and shoot, slowing him down and buying themselves some time to run away.

Meanwhile, in a dark corner, Shikieiki's round reset device is glowing purple, warning of the dream spirits messing within, but it suddenly pings, and its light turns pure white.

A light shines above the item as the drawer it's resting in opens; Shikieiki's face can be seen looking elsewhere; then stacks of paper fall on top of the round device, and the drawer where said device is in immediately closes up again.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Hakurei Shrine, snow falls outside the comfort and warmth of the shrine's living room, yet only hurt faces can be seen there.

Tenshi, Lykamei, Suzaku and Aya all look sadly at the floor and the table in front of them, while the wailing cries of Reimu echo all through the living quarters, as if the building itself has been cursed.

"My lady! Miss Reimu, wake up!"

Inside the shrine maiden's room, Rika is desperate, and holds the Hakurei Maiden by the shoulders while shaking her in her attempts to wake her mistress up, but Reimu continues crying and moaning sadly, completely unaware of her maid's despair.

The angelic girl's despair has reached to point where her tears and sobs escape her without control as she asks "why is this happening? My lady! Why can't I help her!?"

Her sword takes its colorful form, a powerful roar that only Rika can hear causes a strong, yet soothing vibration that envelops the entirety of the shrine, which all inside its walls can feel, regardless of not hearing that roar.

When the maid comes back to, she realizes her Soraogan blood limit has been activated, and with a gasp of realization she moves her hands to Reimu's head, and begins an intense healing process.

The mint-green light is intense, and the angelic girl's forehead gets covered in sweat as her face turn red, as though she's overheating.

The sword roars again, a little softer than before, Rika stops her intense healing, and Reimu hics and moans as her eyes flicker open.

She turns those brown eyes to her maid, all red and swollen from all the crying, then whimpers "why did you tell me that story? It's so sad. Poor Satori; not even a youkai deserves that *sob*."

Rika stares at her mistress with confusion, but before she can ask "what are you talking about?" the shrine maiden sighs and calmly says "good thing Ail was there. He'll make it better. He's like you, Rika. You guys are too good. Maybe I should be a little more like you."

"My lady?" The maid's voice trails off as her confusion rises, but even so, she allows the black haired girl to crawl over and use her lap as a pillow.

Reimu sighs contently when she feels her cold head resting on that soft and warm lap, then she softly says "Rika, you are too, mmm, nice. We need to... *mumble mumble*"

Rika sighs with relief when her mistress falls asleep looking so happy, then starts combing her soft hair with her fingers while thinking "_this is strange. It's like she's been possessed, but my lady is too strong, and I don't feel anything in her. Perhaps..._ Hmm?"

Her thoughts are brought to an abrupt halt when she notices Tenshi standing by the door with a concerned look, then the maid smiles and says "it's alright. She's alright now. She was just having a bad dream. A really... really bad dream that needed some healing."

Behind the celestial, Aya cheers a soft "thank goodness," while Suzaku and Lykamei both let out a sigh, the bird's sounding like a long squawk.

Meanwhile, at the storage house's underground bedroom, Mima paces back and forth, using her magical pair of legs to stomp hard with each step, while Suika looks at her seriously, as though ready to unleash a vicious attack.

The evil spirit stops in front of the left wall, suddenly roars and grips her hair on the sides, then releases it and starts punching the wall while shouting "why! am! I! so! ANGRY!"

After the last punch cracks the wall, the oni coldly says "that boy is becoming a burden to you,_ and_ those around you. You should cut that link before you do something you'll regret."

"No!" barks the evil spirit, generating a magical gust by accident. "I don't know the meaning of all this, but my intuition tells me breaking that link is a mistake, and I know my intuition has a 93.2 percent accuracy rate."

The little oni takes a swig of her gourd, but her eyes remain cold and intense, and keeping them on the spirit, she speaks in a dangerous tone.

"Alright then, keep your link. But if you go on a rampage, I won't think twice before attacking you."

A smile creeps over the oni's face as she chuckles, and says "though, it all sounds kind'a fun. I might call Yuugi over so she can watch."

Mima turns to face Suika so abruptly, her hat falls off as her robes dance around her a bit, then angrily says "this is no laughing matter! Something's going on with Ail, and whatever it is, it's all falling on me as well! Grr! If something happens to that kid-"

"He'll be alright," reassures the little oni, sounding more confident and more relaxed.

She takes another gulp from her gourd, sighs more contently, then cheerfully says "he survived your pissed-off attacks, that fool-or-a-godling kid, that time of those mysteriously deadly attacks we can't remember much of, and he'll survive this. Have more faith in him."

Even though she's feeling enraged; enough to rip through that oni's skin with her bare hands; hearing that makes the evil spirit smile.

"Oh, and there was that crazy shadow... Agava is her name," suddenly begins Suika, lost in memory lane. "In fact, that was one of the first things. Then there was that time he and that cute girl that looks like Yukari got stuck inside the sealed Makai. Then there was that _other_ Makai, where he and the green maiden went for the little bat, then there was that gap with teeth that was eating everybody, then that time he was in the world of dragons-"

"ALRIGHT ALREADY, I GET IT!" screams the furious spirit, shutting the oni up, though she merely giggles herself shut, as if taunting that evil spirit.

At first it seems as though Mima is going to throttle the girl, but instead just sigh as if depressed, places her left hand over the left side of her face, and says "I hope this all ends soon."

* * *

Back at Chireiden, Koishi and Orin dash right out of the mansion to the backyard, whimpering as they fly for dear life.

Both are full of cuts and bruises all over their arms and torsos, and both have blood streaming down their faces; Koishi's looking like it has being smeared red.

They both look back as they fly toward the hole to old hell, and shoot massive bullets toward the mansion.

NegaAil bursts through the door and pushes the bullets away with a pair of red barrier placed on his hands, and after quickly getting within 10 feet of the girls he unleashes a hellish barrage of dark needles and red orbs that explode before making contact with their targets.

The girls are blown off course and lose control, crashing on the few flowers alive in the area, then stand up with spell cards already on hand.

Orin's face shows her despair, and feeling hesitant about activating her spell card, she shouts "Ail! Good Ail! Come on, bro! Snap out of it!"

Koishi's spell card is already glowing greenish-grey, and after getting the kasha's attention, and sounding like her natural self, she says "we really goofed up, but we can fix this. Just hit him hard!"

The kasha looks at the satori, who continues "the real Ail is in there, I can feel it. Too bad I can't read minds yet, but that's alright. I still can feel a little of what's going on in that _bastard's_ subconscious!"

"Embryo's Dream," she declares before looking at Orin again, and saying "we'll tire him out, and get the GOOD Ail back again. And if he was lying about onee-chan, _and_ about helping us, we'll kick him in the balls until they break"

The kasha chuckles and laughs, while NegaAil himself grimaces from the thought of that actually happening.

"Corpse Shopping District," declares the redhead as she looks at the red-eyed boy, then says "the other one had golden eyes, and actually looked peaceful. This one has red ones, and they are full of _lies_ and _hate_! I want the other one back. Maybe he can fix my tail too."

"DREAM ON!" shouts the evil boy as he lifts a red spell card, but stops when the world around him and the two girls becomes a twisted and old dream version of some ancient lands.

Green bullet specs start spreading all around the field and now corpses with bodies of zombie fairies infest the rest of the battle field, and all start shooting at the boy while more, and more green bullets spread around.

At the other end of the backyard, Petal walks out the kitchen's door, and when she sees the battle unfolding so close, she gasps and opens her eyes wide, then with some effort she calls "m-MOMKUU! SHA-SATORI-SAMA; BOY IS AFTER AND BACK!"

NegaAil is shooting both Orin and Koishi relentlessly while holding on to a spell card with his left hand, but he is yet to activate it, which has both girls feeling a bit wary.

Koishi's spell switches the green bullets for yellow lasers that spread around like rocketing thorns being shot out of a rose stem, while Orin's corpses pick up on the satori youkai's spell, and shoot tiny blue lasers of their own.

NegaAil just smiles viciously, lifts his spell card while easily navigating through lasers, corpses and bullets, then suddenly gasps with fright and dives left, not caring that a few yellow lasers burned his left arm and knee.

The girls look estranged at each other before looking back and gasping with fright, then quickly cancel their spells in order to fly away from a massive orb of pure energy meant to burn through bodies and consume spirit energies.

The orb explodes before it touches the palace's walls, all thanks to a black and red bullet from the dark boy, but even so, it leaves a nasty burn mark on it and a crater on the ground just before the porch.

Okuu takes Orin's and Koishi's place, aims her controller rod at the boy, and furiously says "you're back! At last! Last time I couldn't get here in time. Last time you killed our Satori! Today is different! Today I protect my family, and kill _you_, evil ex-friend!"

Though he smiles, the evil, red eyed boy can't hide the fear on his face as he thinks "_shit, it's Okuu! Last time I managed to do all I wanted to without her noticing! _[_Finally, I'm back! HA! It's Okuu! You are done for!_]_ Shit, shit, shit! I messed up!_"

"So are you, if we don't escape her right now, kid!"

NegaAil's shouting confuses the hell raven greatly, though she keeps that rod aimed at the boy's head.

Koishi and Orin gasp, knowing why the evil boy shouted so randomly, then the kasha shouts "Okuu, the good Ail is inside that one with the red eyes! Don't destroy his body!"

The raven girl charges up another spirit-destroying shot while saying "he is evil, Orin-chan! Look what he did to your tail! I can't forgive that! He must pay!"

Before Koishi can raise her voice to try and talk some sense into the birdbrain, said girl unleashes her held energy.

NegaAil freezes in place, then all of a sudden the boy's eyes become golden, and in a quick second, the dense one creates a large blue barrier that cracks upon being impacted by the vicious attack.

"You coward! [_Have fun with the bird._] All evil bastards are all cowards!" curses Ail as he struggles to maintain his barrier up, while waiting for the vicious attack to end.

As soon as it stops, Anilan groans loudly and drops on his knees, while Okuu prepares yet another attack.

He quickly stands up, raises his hands defensively, and exclaims "Okuu, wait! It's me! It's Ail! The good Ail! I'm not here to cause trouble! Please, believe me!"

"Listen to him, Okuu! The bad Ail is hiding inside him now!" exclaims Koishi from behind, hoping to get through that thick skull.

The girl shakes her head and says "he lied! Orin told me how he lied last time. That's when he cut her tail! He must not be left alive!"

Ail takes flight. Okuu mimics his move and stops when above the mansion's roof, and when they face each other he lifts a spell card, points it at the hell raven, then says "forgive me, Miss Okuu, but I cannot let you do that. I _HAVE_ to help Satori get her third eye back!"

"I must not fail against the liar," says the brown-haired girl as a spell card appears floating above her control rod.

Now the boy and the hell raven lock eyes as they prepare for the inevitable fight, while Orin and Koishi stay behind the overpowered girl, wondering how they can reason with that girl.

Petal remains at the porch, watching the situation from a safe distance, and looking distressed for both her mom and the supposedly evil boy.

* * *

The boy and the winged girl stare at each other intensely, then, with a smile on his face, Ail says "hey, Okuu. If I win, you'll help me make Satori and Orin get all better again, deal?"

Utsuho smiles innocently and nods, then frowns sadly and says "but if I win, that means you are lying again, so I will have to kill you!"

The boy chuckles, then calmly says "then I'll have to make sure to win. Light Sign, Holy Dance!"

Ail's body is surrounded by a barrier of light, and from it, eight white laser beams spread out, trapping the hell raven between two of them, and as the boy starts moving around a bit, groups of three orbs of light that form a triangle amongst themselves start raining down, exploding on the sides and spreading out as light-blue petal-shaped bullets that fly straight at the intended target.

While this happens, Okuu cheerfully declares "Explosion Sign, GIGA FLARE!", while she is still using that power capable of destroying the spirit of the target.

The dense one looks at the shot being charged from behind the barrier of light, and says to himself "that idiot. She's still using lethal force. [_I told you to fucking RUN! Are you suicidal or something!? GET! US! OUT! OF! HERE! She can't be reasoned with!_] Don't be such a coward... you baby."

The hell raven smiles and cheers as she moves around to avoid getting hit by Ail's bullets, and when her attack is fully charged, an alarm sounds off, a warning sign appears around her control rod, then she cheers "FIRE AWAY~!"

The boy gasps when he sees that intense, giant ball of light heading his way, but he steels himself and moves slightly to the right, grazing Okuu with one of his lasers.

He gazes intensely at that ball of light flying slowly toward him, [_DAMMIT KID, RUN AWAY! I... I DON'T WAN TO DIEEEEEE~!_] then softly gasps and says "watch and learn, you cowardly crybaby!"

The lasers and bullets all stop and disappear, the round orb around the boy matches the color of Okuu's bright-orange Giga Flare, and when that massive bullet touches the shield, it goes flying to his left.

"OH-NO! DAMMIT!" he shouts out of frustration.

He cancels his spell and flies straight after that large orb while calling "PETAL, RUN! RUUUUUN," while at the same time thinking "_darn it all! What have I done? I bounced it to the wrong side!_"

The little hell raven youkai is frozen in shock as the massive ball of death heads her way, and not even Koishi's, Orin's, or Okuu's voices seem to help her react.

The anxious Koishi tries to fly toward the girl as fast as she can, but her desperation prevents her from moving as fast as she needs, and thinks "_no, no! If she dies, Satori dies! MOVE, BODY; MOVE!_"

Ail is the closest, but even so he knows he'll reach the little girl at the same time as the bullet.

A red aura surrounds him, then he suddenly yelps after being pushed back, while the red aura with the shape of his body bullets forward and lands between the girl and the Flare.

NegaAil's body quickly solidifies, he erects a thin red shield, and the ball of death hits.

His bloody scream snaps Petal from her shocked trance, and then she starts to cry and scream as she runs in circles.

Koishi and Orin reach the girl and take her away just as the light consumes the human image inside of it, and after flying mere feet away, the screaming stops, and the overpowered light fades.

* * *

At the hellish depths of the dream world, Kana, Mugetsu and Gengetsu groan as they struggle to maintain their powers balanced while dealing with the giant crystal.

A powerful pulse from within the crystal pushes the girl's beams away from itself, makes all three girls scream as though in pain, then the cracks on its surface start pulsating red while the blondes get off the fake lava as though they are lying on solid ground.

Kana shakes her head while rubbing her crown under her hat, then asks "did we do it?"

Mugetsu chuckles nervously with a smile that shows the world she is well aware of the deep shit they are in, and sweetly says "oh, I wouldn't say that."

Gengetsu grabs her little sister by the back of the neck, adopting a furious look with clenched, jagged teeth, and demands "what the hell happened!? Did we win, or did we screw up!?"

The winged blonde squeezes her hands twice in mid-air to realize she's holding an after image of her sister, who shouts form the distance "onee-san, what are you waiting for? RUN!"

Gengetsu looks back at the crystal, chokes from her attempt to gasp, her face turns blue, and then she flies away as fast as she inhumanly can, racing against a very nasty-looking pulse that's emanating so much energy, it's crackling with blue bolts.

"MUGETSU, I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR THIS!"

"Just fly, you fool! FLY!"

"Oh no, I broke my nails!"

Kana's tearful cries earns her a very cold look from the blonde sisters, then all three girls scream and fly faster when that pulse wave crackles mere feet away from them.

Meanwhile, back at the mansion's backyard, Ail lands on the ground next to a charred lump on the ground, and stares at it with disdain.

The lump increases in size as it inhales some air, then a gurgling chuckle escapes it.

The dense one bends his knees to get a closer look at the lump, then softly asks "why have you done all of this? Why did you hurt my-OUR friends the way you have?"

The lump moves a bit, shaking off some black clumps from itself, and at the far right, at the spot Ail is looking at, is the face of NegaAil, bloodied up from the severe wound on his forehead.

His hair is gone, burned away by the blast, his left eye appears to be sealed tight, and yet he smile vilely at the boy before him, and softly asks "how is Petal? Is she alright?"

Anilan nods and says "she's fine. Just a little shaken," then he looks farther to the right at the little girl being held by Koishi and Okuu while crying out loud, calling for her Momkuu and Satori repeatedly.

The dense one returns his gaze to the weak 'clone' of himself and stares at him with wonder, causing the dark being to gurgle a few chuckles before speaking again. "She's so pure, and so sweet. She's the perfect daughter for Reimu and me. Urgh! Too bad she chose Satori. Still, I just can't hate her for it. Not unlike the rest."

By now, Koishi, Orin, Petal and Okuu approach the boys, and both kasha and satori prepare deadly spells on their hands while staring with hatred at that evil being dying on the ground.

Ail raises his hand, silently asking them to wait a little longer, then looks back at NegaAil, who grins vilely, and says "you only know a mere fraction of the things I've done... Ail. After the reset, you will learn what hell is. You will learn why these bitches all deserve what they got from me!"

The vile boy lifts himself up, getting stabbed on both shoulders with the energy from the hateful girls, and shouts "they didn't come for Reimu when she needed them; when she found out she couldn't have that child! Even Yukari, that old hag, never even glanced over to check on her!"

He falls to the ground again, coughing out a bit of blood and laughing softly, and then says "I don't regret a thing. I love *cough* Reimu... with all my... he-heart."

As he expels his last breath, Koishi stabs his chest with a pike of pure orange energy, and sternly says "to love someone with 'all you heart,' as you claim, you first need a heart, you piece of crap."

NegaAil expels his last breath, and his body becomes a blood-red mist that spreads around the rocks before dissipating.

Ail stands up and stays still, and as if expecting it, the energy pike on Koishi's hand is now pointed at his neck, while Orin walks closer, and sinisterly says "now then, there's the matter of _this_ Ail here."

Okuu, who cradles the now-sleeping Petal in her arms, glares at the boy and says "yeah. He made my Giga Flare go after Petal-chan. I wonder if he really is good."

Koishi looks into the boy's golden eyes and stares without blinking even once, while said boy merely stays with his hands slightly raised while looking back at her with compassion.

She raises an eyebrow, and says "let's give him a chance. Restore Orin's tail and you'll have convinced me completely."

Anilan nods, raises his right hand and ignites a minty-yellow spark on the tip of each finger, then softly says "the curse is a mixture of holy and demon energies. Orin-sis, this will sting a lot. Are you ready?"

The three girls suddenly gasp and Koishi removes her offending hand away from the dense one, who looks at the girls in confusion, then gasps when he looks to his immediate left, and sees Satori standing next to him, staring at him with those lifeless eyes.

She grips him on the chest of his shirt, pulls him down and gives him a kiss on the lips, then pulls him lower until his chin is on her shoulder, and then she softly says "run. Good luck. And thank you for trying so hard."

Before anybody can react, she throws Ail up with ease, and then the screaming boy crashes against Gengetsu, who carries him as she continues following the other two blondes while repeating "run away, run away; keep running away!"

He looks around in despair, manages to somehow recover his bearings, asks "what are you running away fr-" and then he sees the magical aura flying toward them at the same speed as the dream demon flies.

He watches as the energy covers, and literally eats away Chireiden and its proprietors, then cries out loud "Satori, Orin... What's going on; what happened to Chireiden, and the girls!?"

He understands the situation quickly and gets off Gengetsu's arms, grabs her by the waist, then uses a burst of energy so strong, he cannonballs himself with a screaming spirit demon straight to the Ancient City.

On the way they crash against Kana Anaberal, who gasps when the winged blonde accidently gropes her butt before gripping the bow on her back.

They turn upward after passing over Parsee's bridge and Ail catches Mugetsu by the back of her shirt after catching up to her, and then shouts "I'LL GET US OUT FASTER," over the blonde's protests.

They reach the top, which looks like it's fading slowly, leaving behind green wires that create the polygons which create the shapes of the rocks and the walls of the cave, but none of them are paying attention to that.

Without realizing it, the girl's on Ail's arm begin to fade as fast as he reaches the exit, and yet it appears as if to him, they were never there to begin with.

Just as he flies above a translucent Yamame and Kisume, he gasps when he sees Reimu walking out of the thick mist from outside and into the cave, looking around with fright while crying "AAAAIIIILLLL! Answer me, please!"

He calls back to her and dives down into her arms, not fully understanding why he is so eager to accept her embrace, while Reimu says between kisses "muah; Ail, my love; muah-muah; I'm so relieved! I thought I would never see you again! Muah; please be more careful, my love!"

He grabs the girl's face and holds her so that they are looking eye to eye, then says "Reimu, we have to get out of here, no-"

The energy pulse from the crystal reaches the boy and the girl, both begin to glow faintly, slowly fade away as if the wind was blowing them away like dust, then everything turns white.

...

At that very moment, inside Yukari's room, her triangle, which rests on her stomach as she contently hibernates on Ail's old bed, turns from pure white, to blinking red, meaning the world inside in critical need of assistance.

* * *

**THREE DAYS LATER**

At the Hakurei Shrine, Rika, Suika and Tenshi fight the snowstorm that's assaulting the grounds in order to deal with the piling snow on the roof.

Though the roof is strong enough to take on the pressure, the guest inside it is growing more nervous about the creaking sounds, and the insides are getting too cold for the sick Reimu to bear.

Half of the roof is clear of the snow already, so Rika, who is having some trouble keeping her wings stable because of the strong gusts, signals the two girls to stand behind her, and then she unsheathes a short sword and crosses the blade diagonally in front of her torso.

The unsharpened side of the sword glows green, and the girl draws a perfect green triangle in front of herself, then draws a line just above the base of the triangle, and swings that sword one more time with all her might.

A powerful blast of wind concentrates in front of the triangle and blows away the rest of the snow in an instant, and after staring impressed at the work done, Tenshi pats Rika on the back and exclaims "that was awesome!"

"You should have done it sooner," casually says Suika, who is still in the tiny Hakurei Maiden clothes.

The shrine maid sheathes her sword and grins at the oni, then casually says "but if I had, it wouldn't have been as effective."

After saying this, she pulls a card from her pocket and mutters "Oath Keeper," throws the small sword inside a golden gate that opens to her right, then dusts her hands while said gate closes up.

The little girl chuckles, takes a swig from her gourd, then says "come on. Let's head inside. It's starting to get cold out here!"

After they fly down from the roof, they see Mima floating by the tees nearby, unaffected by the harsh climate and seemingly unaware of her surroundings.

After staring at the stiff spirit floating around for a while, Rika frowns and says "that's it I'm going to talk to her!"

Suika grabs her arm and pulls her back, giving the maid a very stern look, and coldly says "you have Reimu to take care of. Let me handle the spirit. That goes _double_ for you, celestial."

Tenshi stops herself from moving from that spot when she notices the unnerving look on the oni, grabs the winged maid by the other arm, then takes her inside, softly saying "come on, Hime-chan. The Hakurei needs us."

The shrine's maid tries to struggle against the oni and her old friend, but she is quick to realize there's more to that spirit right now, and so she stops her struggling and nods once, allowing the blue haired girl to take her inside.

Inside the living room, Marisa holds the shivering Lykamei in a tight embrace, looking very content while saying "mmmm you're like my blankets. So cool, yet so warm and soft."

The little dark-skinned spirit spots the girls entering the back door, then immediately reaches for the angelic maid and whimpers "uuu. Rika," while trying to break free from the blissful witch's grasp.

Rika giggles playfully, then sweetly says "Miss Marisa, please let little Miss Lykamei go. I need her help."

The witch lets the little girl go after a soft complain, then says "oh well, it was nice while it lasted."

The shivering girl dashes to Rika's thigh and clings tightly to it, rubs her eyes on the red skirt, and after a sniffle, she asks "why are things out here so scary? That creaking roof and that girl! Rika-chan, make it all go away *sob*!"

The winged maid picks the girl off the floor and carries her while heading to Reimu's room, saying "I'll go check on Reimu. Tenshi, please prepare the stove, so that I may prepare dinner."

The celestial grumbles softly while glaring at the cute sobbing ghost girl crying on Rika's shoulder, and thinks "_that lucky-! Tch! I'll prepare that stove so good, I'll get all of Rika's hugs!_"

Suzaku flies from her perch and lands next to the stove while saying "_don't be so selfish. Master's been all over you these past days. Let the little girl have some time with her._"

Tenshi places both hands on the stove, sighs as though with relief, and says "I know. I just can't help it."

Marisa places her hand on the blue haired girl's shoulder, and while smirking mischievously, she playfully says "so~ you want all of Rika for yourself. How selfish. You should share some more."

A vein pulsates on the celestial's fist as she grumbles behind her teeth.

Meanwhile, at Reimu's room, the shrine maiden is sitting upright under her sheets as she greets Rika and Lykamei. "Well, what's this? Not Tenshi, but the little ghost? What an interesting switch, if I do say so myself.

The angelic maid merely giggles, and asks "My Lady, you're awake. Is the temperature comfortable for you now?"

The black haired girl nods twice, and says "much better. Thank you for taking such good care of me, Rika-chan."

The shrine maid giggles with glee, but suddenly frowns and asks "and... Miss Reimu, what about the dreams? Have there been any more?"

Reimu shakes her head twice, looks away, and says "ever since the last one that night, I haven't had any dreams about Ail again. Maybe things settled down for him."

Rika smiles, though it's a pained smile that earns her a cheer-up kiss on the cheek from Lykamei; which seems to annoy Reimu; and after thanking the ghost girl and chuckling, she says "well, the important thing is that you are getting healthy again, My Lady, and that you are calm again."

The black haired girl in sleep robes nods, then the shrine maid bows her head slightly and says "well, I'll go prepare dinner now. Please rest while I return with your meal."

Reimu nods and mouths "thank you" before slowly settling herself in her futon and resting her head on her pillow.

She waits for her maid to exit the room, and after hearing her sliding door clack shut, she lets a tear roll down her left eye as she whispers to herself "that's odd. I can't remember his face. I didn't feel a thing when I spoke of him either."

Her tear dries up as she sighs and turns over so that she's lying on her back, and then says "maybe it's a sign that I should just... let him go for good."

Meanwhile, at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, inside the Master's Bedroom, on top of the silk-sheeted bed in pink, lies Remilia with a dreadfully annoyed look on her face, while a large lump under her sheets to her left snores softly and shifts a bit.

Sakuya stands to the left of the bed with an elegantly blank look on her face, and asks "and are you sure doing this would be prudent? That cat is still at large, My Lady. She won't comply."

The light-blue haired vampire bares her fangs as her face turns red, pulls the sheets away, reveals Flandre in pink pajamas clinging on her, curled into a ball, stabbing her knees on her older sister's hip and stomach while nibbling on her knuckles and clawing her left wing.

Remilia hisses at the chief maid, and angrily shouts "I don't give one shit! Sakuya, I want her OUT OF HERE! I need to SLEEP!"

A silver washtub filled with dirty water and Patchouli's clothes falls on top of Remilia's face, then slowly slides down without spilling a drop while the distressed maid calls for her unconscious mistress' name over and over; all while Flandre continues sleeping contently.

Over at the mansion's laundry room, Koakuma and Leon scratch their heads while looking at a particular spot on the ground, then the little devil exclaims "but it was right here! It couldn't have just moved on its own!"

The boy sniffles, and sadly says "there goes my chance to enjoy my love's suit for two-piece swimming."

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Agava, Petal, and Lykamei were created by Willie G.R.

Ail's spell cards - "Blast Sign, Expansion that Soothes"; "Light Sign, Holy Dance", and

Mugetsu's spell card - "Grapple Sign, Throwing the Cute Idiot" were created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami and Suzaku the Vermilion Bird were created by Snapshot 2010.

AUG 13 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**So when was the last time I uploaded a chapter? I don't even remember. Well, for some reason, I just can't wire like I used to anymore, real life also gets in the way, and now the biggest setback was that my hard drive, a 1 TB HDD suddenly F****ED UP! Lost all the data there, notes, pictures, albums ...I was pissed. Thankfully, I had my fics backed up twice, but I was also without a computer until I could SOMEHOW get a new hard drive. As luck would have it, I was gifted an old computer "DELL" that was busted, but the HDD was compatible with my system, it's working ok, but it's just 80 GBs. Still, thought limited in comparison, it is working ok, and I can write. Now let's see how long it will take me to write the next chapter. Dammit, why am I so distracted? I'm spending most of my time on social networks, and I think if I had the chance, in chat rooms too. *Sigh*, whatever. Let's see where this all leads to now.**

* * *

Koishi: Oh, come on. Stop beating around the bushes, and just tell them all how you are going around looking for a _girlfriend_. Te-he-he! You poor, lonely little boy~

Me: H-HEY! That's personal information not meant for the public!

Koishi: It is now.

Me: Uuu~

Koishi: Aww, come on, don't be like that. Be proud that you consciously and unconsciously want love. It's natural in all of us. Even me *sticks out tongue*.

Me: ...

Koishi: No. Those R-18 pictures of Patchouli in bikinis do not count.

Me: AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!

Koishi: *Ignoring Willie.* But all that going out, walking around the park and stuff, that helps. Still, you need to talk. Smiling alone is kind of creepy.

Me: **This is public execution! **And stop spitting out private stuff like that! And how do _YOU_ know all of that anyways! ? You can't read minds!

Koishi: *Smiles and stares very creepily.*

Patchouli: *Glares at Willie from behind her book.* You damned pervert. You can't handle this much woman anyways.

Me: *Smashes own head against wall until everything turns black.*

Satori: Hey, did you also tell your readers how you're playing Kingdom Hearts 3D as well? Tell them about- *notices Willie on the floor.* Alright then... Never mind.


	7. Chapter 7

Jan 4, 2013 - This chapter didn't need that much attention, and yet I still managed to fix some errors, and rewrote some things; particularly during the fight with Ail and Kurumi. Other than that, it was a quick edit.

* * *

Everything is white; there is no earth, no sky, no sea, no clouds; only white nothingness as far as the eye can see.

A thin green laser beam appears on what should be the ground; in the matter of perspectives; and cuts the whiteness in half with ease, but instead of continuing upward, it seems as though it thrusts itself into the white scene, giving a three-dimensional feel to the endless nothingness.

The beam suddenly spreads itself into countless more beams, and each one takes a different shape and size as they cover the land of nothing, creating the shapes of trees, flowers, rock, bushes, and houses; lots of houses.

After a loud bleep and a deep whoosh, the sky flickers itself on, clouds slowly fade back into existence, and the beams that now create polygons and shapes made of little squares fill themselves up with colors.

In a flash, what was once a white nothingness is now a clone image of Gensokyo, with fairies, youkai and small birds roaming through the land, flickering into green beam squares for a second before filling up as the image of the creatures being mimicked again.

* * *

It's a beautiful mid-spring morning at the Human Village, and already most of the residents there are busying themselves with their daily tasks.

They move about in a hurry; not one of them paying attention to the brown-haired boy lying on his back next to the Dragon God statue, which has lost the colors on its jeweled eyes.

Ail springs up with a loud gasp, as though breathing for the first time again, and pants as he holds his chest and doubles over.

He smacks his lips as he attempts to moisten his dry mouth and moves to a kneeling position so as to get on his feet afterward, but he suddenly holds his head and screams.

He bends further until his face is a few inches away from the grass, then groans and closes his eyes.

He can see himself attacking Remilia with his sword of light, attempting to thrust that weapon right on her chest, while the vampire does all she can to try and stab his heart with her spear.

The images rush forward; like some videotape being fast-forwarded; and now he sees himself fighting with Aya and using many dirty tactics on her until she's finally out.

The images fast forward again, and now he's attacking Byakuren, breaking Kogasa's umbrella with his knee, and placing a charm on Nue's neck shortly after sucker-punching her.

Again his memories fast forward to the time he tortured Reisen's body and mind until he convinced her he loved her, only to leave her broken in Eirin's strict care.

The memories move forward to a time he's beating Alice, then to attacking Akyuu's home in search of information that turned out to be fake, and quickly going to Keine's school and humiliating her in front of her students, then to attacks to the Misty Lake, then to attacking the Tengu Village; as suicidal as that may seem to him...

The memories of the events NegaAil caused in that alternate Gensokyo rush inside Ail's mind as if they were his own, causing him to shed tears as he sees his own hands stained with the blood of those he calls his friends.

Finally, the memories of his past four failures and the mess at Chireiden reach him, and now he sobs and cries out loud as he blames himself for everything that has happened.

Keine's suicide after he entered her school, Reisen's termination at the hands of her own master, his own death at the hands of Nue just before he succeeds in convincing her he's not evil, the horrible things his evil self did to Alice, Hourai and Shanghai, and how it all ended with Marisa and himself killing each other, and finally, how his success at Chireiden was turned into a failure thanks to a twist of fate.

He's beyond himself with grief and is reaching the point where his mental strain makes him believe he should repay all the misdeeds with his own blood, but he finally remembers what Shikieiki and Yukari had told him before.

His memories from just before entering the dream world reach him, allowing him to fully understand everything and calming him down enough for him to stop crying like a hurt child and stop those self-destructive thoughts.

Though he's stopped the loud sobbing and crying, his tears continue to roll down his cheeks and fall down to the grass between his hands and knees.

He lifts his right arm and explores the full-powered bracelet on his wrist, glances around as if looking for something, then gulps and reaches inside his left pocket.

He quickly pulls the small crystal that contains Shanghai's soul within it, and then holds it close to his mouth while cradling it with both hands.

His lips start moving fast, sobs escape him as he whispers requests to the spirit within that crystal, speaking softly yet hurriedly, as if wanting to be secretive during a desperate moment.

After he's done whispering, the tip of the fingers on his right hand each glow as bright as a star, then he gently presses his fingers against the crystal, making the little spirit within it glow bright yellow.

Shortly after, he flicks his thumb on the top of that crystal, opening it up and letting the spirit free while softly speaking and still sniffling "please. Please do this for _them_."

Shanghai's soul rises slowly out of the crystal, hovers in front of the boy, as if studying him carefully, then suddenly bullets toward the direction of the Bamboo Forest of the Lost.

Ail smiles for a brief second before bending down again, this time to catch the breath his rapid-beating and anxious heart keeps stealing from him, and as he does he remembers all that he saw in his mind moments before.

"AIL? Ail, honey, what's the matter!"

Like a well set computer program, Reimu arrives at the expected time, but Anilan doesn't care for the fact that he knows this so well.

The girl in peasant's clothes reaches him and drops on her knees next to him, rapidly holds him by his shoulders to show support, rests her cheek on his back, and asks "my love, what's the matter? Why are you crying? Please say something to me."

She starts to cry along with him, snapping the dense boy out of the pathetic self-pity he's feeling in order to turn around quickly and hold the girl in a soft embrace, and then softly says "it's alright. I'm ok Reimu."

He sniffles one more time, then the girl does the same as him and says "don't scare me like that, you idiot! I was *hic* so scared," while striking him softly on the shoulder with her fist.

Rika hides her sword back beneath her brown peasant's kimono as she gets closer to the couple, sighs with relief, then casually says "if you can stand, please do so."

While she says this, she grabs Reimu's hand and helps her up, while studying the boy carefully, apparently very interested in his eyes.

It appears like she will get hostile toward him, but sighs, smiles sweetly, and says "please, let's go home. I feel like we shouldn't linger here any longer."

Ail stands and looks at both girls with a casual, yet tried face, then nods and says "you are right Rika. Let's go home. I need to talk to the both of you."

Both girls look confused toward the boy, then at each other, and then back at the boy, noticing some urgency behind his golden eyes.

Reimu rushes over to him, grabs hold of his arm and wraps her own around it and as they walk toward their home she softly says "I'm here for you, my sweet."

* * *

They swiftly reach the single-room hut, and Ail erects a yellow barrier as a door as soon as they walk through the pink curtains.

He sits by the side of the table closest to the doorway, and he's facing inside the house at the two girls on the other side of said table.

He keeps looking at them with a serious expression, making the awkward silence among them even more awkward than it needs to be, and raising the tension that's evident on the girl's faces.

Ail closes his eyes and takes a deep breath as he wonders what words would be the best choice to explain what needs to be explained, and after carefully arranging his thoughts and words, he opens his eyes and looks straight at Reimu while speaking calmly.

"Reimu, Rika; I know this will sound crazy to you, but I am not the Ail that _you_ know."

The girls; especially Reimu, open their eyes wide and gasp, but before the black haired girl can voice herself, Ail continues "I know, it sounds weird, but it's the truth. Reimu, look at me in the eyes and you'll know I'm not lying. The Ail you married and I are two different people."

The loving wife lets a soft whimper and a sob escape her before finally gaining the courage to speak, though with a cracking voice. "Ail, ho-honey, what kind of sick joke *hic* are you playing? S-stop it this instant!"

A drop of sweat rolls down the boy's temple as he forces himself to look at the crying girl. Deep inside he wishes he could keep his mouth shut, but he has a mission, and he wants to return to his real home, so there's really no other way.

He gulps down hard to settle his heart, and then softly says "just look into my eyes, Reimu-sis. Be strong."

The girl sobs out loud and sinks her face into Rika's stomach in search of comfort, then turns her head slightly so that she can look at the boy with her right eye.

Rika herself remains silent and doesn't appear to be surprised or shocked at all, but regardless of anything she comfort her mistress with a rub on the head while staring straight into the boy's eyes.

Looking at Reimu acting like that causes Ail to blush slightly, yet he remains as he is, sighs with exasperation, then says "look, I came from another Gensokyo to learn from a terrible mistake I made; one that could have destroyed your future."

"Reimu-sis, because of my meddling in time, I tricked you into falling in love with me. I... I'm so sorry."

He knows he is lying about tricking her part, and the gasp that the ex-shrine maiden makes and the way she slowly turns her head to look at him with hurt and disgust causes him to shed a painful tear he notices a moment too late.

"How could you even say that?" Reimu's cracking voice cuts through Ail's heart like a hot knife through butter, but he knows this is for the best, so he fakes indifference, though his swelling eyes betray him as the girl whimpers "after so many years living with me; claiming you loved me so much."

He wants to tell her how much the other Ail loves her, but he thinks that doing so could only backfire, so instead he chooses to softly say "I'm sorry Reimu, I really am."

He stands up and undoes his barrier while saying "I must be going now. I have a lot of things I need to take care of if I am ever to return home."

He turns around to face the door and immediately feels as though he's been crushed by a cabinet, but in his daze he understands what has tackled him to the ground is Reimu, who cries "NO! Ail, your home is here, with me! Please don't leave me!"

The ex-shrine maiden is crying on the boy's back while crushing his stomach with her crossed arms.

The dense one groans as he tries to pull himself free from the girl's mighty grip while thinking "_holy crap, it's like she's lost no strength at all! For the love of Suwako, I'm going to spit my guts out!_"

He can feel that pressure slowly leaving him and allowing him to move again, and when he looks back, wondering why the girl released him, he notices Rika pulling Reimu gently away from him, gestures him to wait with a hand signal, and after he turns around and sits while hugging his knees, she speaks gently to her mistress.

"My Lady Reimu, I understand this is very hard for you, but please listen to me. Please look into that boy's eyes. Once you do, you will understand he is telling the truth."

She lifts her sights to stare dangerously at the boy, and more firmly says "however, _you_ are hurting Miss Reimu, and the only reason you are still in one piece is because you mean something to her. Don't give me _any_ more reasons to get aggressive."

While the maid says this, the black haired girl looks into the boy's golden eyes and stares for a while.

She wants to prove to them and to herself that all of this is just a really bad joke being played on her, and so she gazes deeply into his golden eyes. Shortly after, her tears start to roll down her cheeks when the realization slowly reaches her.

Her sobs breaks both Ail's and Rika's hearts, and both wince when the girl cries "not-not my Ail. He's not..."

She sobs louder as she runs to the little spot where the bed is, pulls the curtain so that the others don't see her, then she cries "leave! Just... do whatever you want, whoever you the hell are!"

Hearing her cry hurts Anilan greatly, and all he wants to do now is cheer her up again, but that's when Rika steps in and grabs him by the collar of his shirt.

She easily carries him out the door and throws him out in front of the house, then unsheathes her sword and coldly says "I don't know what was your goal in telling all of that to my lady, exactly. You could have just made some excuse to get away without having to hurt her that much."

She walks closer, making Ail crawl backward out of fright, while saying "whatever. The damage is done. Now get out of here before I lose control of my sword. Go on. GET GOING!"

That shout snaps the boy out of his confusion and helps him realize he has to get out of there, so he kicks right off the ground and takes flight.

He struggles to balance himself as he takes higher altitudes, and after he's settled, he starts to think about what he's done, and after some thought he sighs and says to himself "this is it. This is the world I almost managed to create out there. Shikieiki was right. Me enlightened? What a laugh."

He continues his aimless flying, thinking about where to go next, and then it appears as though the sky gobbles him up, and now it is as if he was never there in the first place.

* * *

That winter afternoon, at the Garden of the Sun, the cold wind blows gently, making the snow-covered summer flowers sway left and right and shaking the snow off their petals.

A woman with short green hair and red eyes, whom wears a red plaid vest over a long-sleeved white shirt, a long plaid skirt and a long yellow scarf, walks by the flowers in a manner that seems like she's dancing along with the flowers' swaying.

She moves her hips left and right as she hums contently, leaving subtle footprints of her brown boots on the snow while making her way towards a pink and white house that's set next to a blue and white flower the same size of the house.

The house itself is a sick color of pink with white windows, a white door, and a red roof; however, to make the mistake of believing this reflects the inhabitant's persona would be lethal, especially for fools; and this proof is well presented at the back of said house.

The walls of the house's back are stained with dried blood spots, the bloodstained snow has a few clawed limbs half buried on it, and there is a weak wolf youkai limping its way away from the house; all covered in bruises and blood; as the back door closes up.

The green haired woman, Yuka Kazami, approaches the front door and casually knocks on it with a pink parasol she's holding on to with both hands in front of her chest, and sweetly calls "Ayalina~ you want to play today?"

From within the house, an energetic, sweet and motherly voice calls back "Yuka dear, I was beginning to worry. I thought you didn't want to play with me today."

The door opens up to reveal Ayalina Leuch Higani, Ail's young-looking mother, whom has long, slightly wavy brown hair, lively maroons eyes, and is wearing a legless white leotard with a diamond cut on the bellybutton, a 'v' cleavage cut, arm gloves with cotton fluffs on the end borders, and matching calf high boots with cotton fluffs on the top edges.

"Hello sweetie, ready to play?"

The woman's sweet voice fails to match the vicious looks the girls are giving each other, and after a quick glint from the eyes and a sudden malicious grin splits their lips, both girls are punching each other on the cheeks.

Those fists ignite with yellow energy, and both women blast each other at point blank with powerful bullets, but other than a few burns on their faces and necks, they are just fine, and quickly take flight over the semi-frozen, out of season sunflowers.

Once they reach a central spot, Yuka turns around and shoots massive yellow orbs and sharp looking petals at Ayalina, who replies the attack with buzz-saw lilies and pink bullets the size of her fists.

Both get bombarded by each other's bullets, but as soon as the explosions stop, they fly out of the dust clouds and punch each other on the face mid-way through.

Yuka quickly connects a punch in Ayalina's gut, said woman counters with a kick to the groin, the green haired woman replies with a nasty punch to the breast, which the brown haired woman replies with a merciless headbutt.

Kazami falls down to the merciless snow-covered ground, but just before she crashes she turns her body around and falls on her feet, a thick cloud of snow and dust lifts to the air, and while blinded, she aims her parasol at Ayalina and shouts "Master Spark!"

A spell card appears just above the parasol, glowing yellow before sinking into the pink weapon that unleashes a devastating yellow beam of light that envelops the leotard-clad woman entirely.

Even when her skin is threatened to be cooked by the massive beam, Ail's mother merely grunts a few times before lifting her hand to summon a sunflower shield, then sighs and says to herself "gonna have to smack the bitch a little harder today."

Just as the beam begins to die down, Ayalina takes a spell card from her cleavage, and with a vicious grin on her face, she loudly and playfully declares "Flowery Bitch-Slap for the Fair Maiden!"

The card glows bright blue as flowers pluck themselves from the ground to join their master in the air, then all begin to shatter into separate pieces.

The petals become hard and sharp, yet flutter seemingly harmlessly to the ground, while the stems become spear beams that shower endlessly on Yuka, and the pistils, round or otherwise, begin to spin like disks in the air before homing in formation toward their target.

Yuka scoffs with disgust and takes flight in order to join Ayalina and beat her up for defiling the flowers, but as soon as she gets into the petals curtain, the stiff bullets begins to slap her on the cheek while leaving nasty burn marks on them.

They all go straight to the face to slap the flower youkai without mercy, the pistil disks strike her on the back while she's distracted, the spear beams adjust themselves so that they can punish the youkai further, then Ayalina herself dives toward the woman with a raised fist while happily cheering "It's my win, greenie!"

A blinding flash of light covers the garden's sky, and while it shines there are a couple of explosions that shake the entirety of that land, then the light dims, the sky settles, a mysterious dirt cloud dissipates, and then there's only silence.

Yuka and Ayalina crawl out of their adjacent craters; their clothes torn, burned and tattered; then rest their arms on the ground so they can rest their heads on them.

They groan in pain as they turn their heads to look at each other and glare hatefully, and then begin to laugh as if they just heard the most hilarious of jokes.

A sigh escapes Yuka before she says "fine, I concede. It's your win this time, you bitch," then blood starts to dribble down the corner of her mouth.

Ayalina coughs out some blood, grins widely, then weakly says "heh, I knew you'd be too distracted with my leotard to pay attention today. Oh, that's right..."

The young-looking mother turns around to expose the pink parasol stabbed to the left side of her stomach, pulls it out with a bit of effort, then speaks casually while returning it to its owner.

"Here you go. Next time, aim for my chest, or it'll be another win for me."

Yuka pukes out some more blood, lifts her right arm to accept her parasol, and weakly says "fine, fine. Stop rubbing it in. Now could you help me get back home? It'll take some time before I can move my legs again."

Ayalina smiles, stands up, wraps Yuka's right arm around her neck, then pulls her out of the crater, revealing the flower master's missing left leg and burnt right leg.

They both chuckle after exploring the damage, Yuka's left arm falls off, and after both stare at it for a few seconds, the green haired youkai casually asks "ah, could you get that?"

* * *

It's an eerily quiet late-spring afternoon at the Garden of the Sun, where a gentle breeze makes the flowers dance softly and quietly, adding a sense of mystery to this land of flowers.

Ail appears on the sky like a flash of lightning, and while he looks around in confusion, wondering why it isn't morning anymore, the sunflowers below slowly turn to face him, as if watching him with interest.

"I swear it was morning just now. Something weird is happening in this world," comments the boy as he lands on the small patch of dirt road between flowerbeds.

He looks around, wondering what to expect to find here, and then he holds his right temple as he kneels on the ground and images of him blasting a curly blonde on the right side of the face with a point-blank bullet makes him feel sick to his stomach.

The scene changes to seeing how he pushes his foot on a blonde vampire's back and ripping her wings off with his hands, only because she didn't want to call Yuka, and then finally, he sees himself shooting at a light-red house with a blue roof to the ground while shouting obscenities to the flower youkai; yet he doesn't see her anywhere in the memories.

The flashbacks end and the boy stands on his wobbly legs, then sniffles as he rubs his forearm under his nose, then says to himself "that godsdamned bastard. Elly. Kurumi. What reason did he have to do that to them?"

He takes a stumbling first step and almost falls on the flower bed to the right, yet manages to remain on his feet and save himself from crushing that bed of violets.

The boy sighs with relief, straightens up as he regains his balance, and then says to himself "still, I didn't see Yuka in the flashback, nor can I feel her presence now. Something's very wrong."

He walks down the many roads between the countless flowerbeds in hopes of finding out more about what has his evil self has done there, thinking that repairing whatever he damaged might earn him the trust he needs to get out of that world.

He stops after he feels he has walked for hours, then looks up at the sun and says "still not setting. It's like it's eternally noon, and yet I feel cool and refreshed. I should be sweating under this much sunlight."

He blinks twice and squints his eyes as the realization hits him, then he whispers to himself "it's not hurting my eyes either. Something strange happened to this dream world. I mean, I can remember everything now; I have access to most of my powers... I think; and it's like this place has become..."

Before he can muse further, a rustle from the right startles him into a defensive position, and then he gets low to the ground and tries to look between the flower stems.

Those stems appear to will themselves against him and band together to block his view, so Ail decides it's time to use his own natural abilities for once.

He closes his eyes as he places his hands on the ground, and to him, a circle of pure orange energy surrounds him and describes all that around him to his mind with energy images similar to a bat's echo, and in a short minute he finds out there is a woman hiding behind the taller sunflowers to his right.

He softly kicks off the ground and hovers two feet over it, and then he makes his way toward the hiding woman, expecting the worst, yet hoping for the best.

After leaving the ground, the image his scanning energy wave had created for him vanishes in an instant, however he has a good feeling his stalker hasn't moved at all, so he continues hovering to her hiding spot.

He stealthily reaches the tallest sunflowers, miraculously making no noise as he made his way to them, then he quietly places his hands between two stems.

Ail gulps as his tension rises, unsure of what he'll find, or how he'll be greeted by this woman, so as not to chicken out he pulls those stems apart and loudly calls "Elly, is that you?"

The blonde youkai woman appears to ignore the boy as she continues to water the flowers as silently as a ghost, but after a few moments she slowly turns her head toward the boy as he lands close, and then she stares quietly.

She's wearing her usual dark red dress with the pink capelet and her pink sunhat, her scythe appears to be missing, though it's usually not far behind, and her golden eyes match her hair, which curls up at the edges.

Her eyes seem a bit distant, as if she doesn't even know where she's standing, then all of a sudden they become frightful as she covers her mouth and gasps loudly, falls on her butt after summoning her weapon, which falls to her left, then start to sob and cry while pushing herself away from the boy.

Ail expected this and is prepared to do what he must to calm her down but that's when he sees himself in his mind, laughing at the poor girl as he lifts her dress and-

He doesn't want to see more and simply shakes his head to erase the image, but now that he knows what he's really dealing with, he stands five feet away and extends his hand to the girl.

"Elly," he calls softly and speaks slowly. "Listen to me. I am the good Ail. I didn't come here to demand a child, nor for revenge on Reimu's pain. I am here to make amends and earn yours and Yuka's trust again."

The blonde breathes through her mouth as she tries to kick herself backward, but she can't budge an inch due to her nervousness.

The dense one sighs and holds his face with his right hand, devastated at the sight before him, then says to himself "to have made youkai fear me like this is just... so painful."

He suddenly remembers something, smiles naturally, bends his knees until his face is almost level with hers, and softly and slowly asks "Elly, could you please tell me where Yuka is? I'm sure you'd want to-"

Ail stops speaking, glances up to the sky, then spring on his feet and spreads his arm above himself, creating a quick blue barrier that repels strong white orbs the size of children's heads.

They impact fiercely against the quick barriers that hold their place and leave a bit of smoke behind, and then a girl angrily calls "you stay away from Elly, you brute!"

He looks up at his attacker and shouts "no, Kurumi, you got it all wrong! I'm not that evil bastard! I'm good! I can prove it!"

The angry vampire girl in the sky has long blonde hair she adorns with a white ribbon, matching yellow eyes, large purple and black bat wings, and wears a white long-sleeved blouse and a blood-red overall skirt.

She dives down straight at the boy while shouting "like I'll believe that, you fiend!"

Ail smiles as he looks with admiration at the charging girl, then loudly exclaims "my, your wings look beautiful, Kurumi! And have you been losing weight? You look simply stunning!"

The vampire girl stops her charge and holds her blushing cheeks with her hands while giggling, then says "aww, you noticed? Thank you! I've been exercising a bit more and waxing my win-HEY! WAIT A MINUTE!"

By the time she realizes what the boy did, he's already halfway through to making it into Yuka's house.

She snarls while her right eye twitches, then she growls to herself "curse you vanity! It was him who ripped my old wings off! Remember the pain, Kurumi."

She flies down to Elly, who hugs herself while sighing softly, and quickly inspects the blonde for any damage done while cooing "it's ok, he's gone. Kurumi is here now."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, while Meiling and Sakuya argue with Kimi over the mountain of snow that's been shoveled over the main entrance doors, Flandre sits in a corner of her room, shivering and whimpering comforting words to herself.

She twists her neck around in alert whenever she thinks she has heard something moving close by, but this time; being the hundredth time she turns that neck; she sighs after curling up into a ball again, and says "stupid Remilia."

She shifts herself a bit to get more comfortable, and continues "she has no idea what I'm going through, doesn't give a damn about that evil cat, and then she just ate my strawberry cake like that! I hate her."

Something shifts on the ceiling without her notice and quietly watches her as she continues "oh sure, that cat isn't going after **_her_**, so of course she doesn't care. Ah, but if that thing was scratching **_HER_** every day, she would have the whole stupid mansion hunting for that little black crap."

The stalker moves above the blonde girl, making no sound for her to pick up on, while said girl gulps once, looks around herself a little more calmly, then comments "I feel cold wind. Tch! Great! Now there's a draft in my room?"

The stalker drops down, strikes the blonde on the face while she's gasping and knocks her on the floor, then proceeds to jumping on top of her and pinning her arms with his own, and then quickly chants a spell that traps the girl's neck, wrists and ankles with yellow energy bands that drain her of her unnatural strength.

By the time Flandre realizes what has happened, she has a boy with three black cat tails sitting her stomach, and more energy bands around her knees and elbows.

The boy has wavy black hair he makes into a small ponytail, black cat ears, fierce yellow eyes, and wears a black muscle shirt, camouflage pants, and geta sandals.

He smiles while scowling at her and brushes the side of her head with two of his clawed fingers, and when she tries to call for help the band around her neck chokes her and cuts her breath.

The boy looks down on her, smiles wider as he places the back of his hand on her cheek, and softly hisses "my love."

The girl's face turns red as her eyes widen with confusion and surprise, then the boy continues speaking softly "how I've longed to be on your arms, feel your cold and loving embrace in front of the fireplace at that wonderfully soft couch of yours."

The girl starts to whimper, so the boy retracts his arm and says "ah, that's right. You don't recognize me in this form, and I'm sure you're so nervous you can barely pick up on my scent."

The boy grins and hisses as his body shrinks rapidly, quickly revealing to the terrified vampire what she suspected in the back of her mind.

She now has that black cat from hell purring on her belly while looking down on her, and after a few short seconds the cat grows back into its human form before her eyes and says "oh yes. It's me."

"What's the meaning of this?" squeaks the terrified girl. She manages to calm herself down, and speaking more normally, she asks "how can you call me 'your love' after all you've done to me? You don't tear someone you love to pieces! Ail and Meiling said so!"

The boy's jagged grin terrifies the girl as he gets his face uncomfortably close to hers and softly says "I am so sorry my love, but revenge comes before pleasure. Although, my last gifts to you went unappreciated. Hmm; I guess making your clothes more alluring wasn't a good gifting choice. But I'm a cat; I don't know what else to give. There isn't any prey here for me to share with you either."

The girl tries to break free of her magical bonds, making the boy smile viciously before saying "I suppose you're confused. I mean, it's been so long since you killed my master, it's no surprise you don't even recognize me at all."

He stands up and places his straightened fingers on his chest as he says "my name is Azzhara; my lovely Flandre Scarlet; and I have come here to take my revenge on you for killing my master; one of the most powerful vampires in Gensokyo!"

His grin and eyes become vicious; he lifts his left foot, then spears it down to the girl's chest.

Flandre flinches and clenches her eyes shut while she wait for the pain she is sure will be unbearable, but instead of pain, she hears a sigh and feels a mere tap on her chest.

She slowly opens her eyes as she turns her terrified face to the nekomata, who is holding the side of his head while frowning, then whimpers in her attempt to call for help again.

Azzhara chuckles softly; he punches himself on the face, and after a groan of pain he says "I left this accursed mansion that day and swore I would have my revenge on you, Flandre Scarlet, but there was a problem."

He takes his foot back and walks over the girl's head, place his left hand on her temple, and continues "you have such destructive powers, and I knew the moment I were to attack you, I would be dead and unable to fulfill my revenge to the fullest."

He bends his body over until his forehead is touching Flandre's, and he continues "so I trained, meditated, trained, and trained, and meditated some more, finding ways to overcome your strength and that power, and then I finally found it; the solution to my dilemma!"

He jumps to her left, drops on his knees, and grabs her hand with both of his as he excitedly says "there, in that new Buddhist Temple! I found a book that mused over theories of the '_eyes_' on everything. Most of those theories were crap, but the rest were good. Now, no matter how hard you may try, you cannot simply **blow** me up! It was a simple matter of covering my own eye with alternating magical wavelengths. So simple, and yet so complicated."

"But I saw it, and I touched it too! **I broke it**," demands the blonde while trying to pull her hand away from that vile cat boy.

He complies to her unspoken wishes and lets go of her hand, then walks around while speaking. "The book also spoke of how to make exact copies of the eyes. Of course, these were all theories I turned into facts. But I didn't care; not as long as these theories or facts helped me fulfill my revenge on you, and oh, it was all so wonderful, torturing you like I have so far."

Azzhara stops walking and starts to shake in place, turns his head slightly so that Flandre can see the right side of it, then glumly says "but the more I attacked, the more I liked you. All those years of training and plotting, all my hatred for you just crashed in one single night, and all because my heart would ache for you! Such a wonderful, but painful feeling love is."

He jumps on her again and places the tip of his nose on hers while whispering "I didn't want to believe it, but I fell in _love_ with you! I am such a fool, and yet I care not for my foolishness anymore! However..."

He slowly pulls his face away, grabs her hands as she struggles to break free, and continues "it's not so bad after all. You killed my master, my _father_, so it's fitting that _you_ should take his place, though in a more romantic way. Your sister is more like dad. She's pretty cool, but she's not him."

She wants to cuss at him, tell him to go and shove a nail up his bum, but she can't, and watches with a mixture of fury and surprise as the boy gets off her and walks to the door.

He stands there, smiling at her while holding the knob, then says "one thing though. It may be true that I love you, but I still have to make you pay for all those years of lonely suffering you caused me, so, as my love gift to you, I give you this warning..."

Azzhara grins viciously as his eyes glow with intensity, and after a chuckle, he says "I am going to torture you a little more; I just love your screams that much. Only after I feel my thirst for revenge is satisfied I will come to you in love, and only love. _YOU_ are my new master now, Flandre my love. Please endure and wait for me, just as I had to endure all those years of cold loneliness."

He turns the knob and turns back into a cat as the door opens, then rushes outside the very second the magical binds on the vampire fizzle out.

Flandre breathes in hard and exhales loudly, slowly lifts her upper body until she's sitting upright, stares at the slightly open door for almost a minute, then takes in a deep breath, holds it in until her face turns red, then screams "YOOUUU MOTHERF********RRRRRRRRRRRRRR!"

Her voice travels all over the mansion, the island, the lake, and high above the mansion a little black blob flies erratically while saying "is that so~? What a dirty potty mouth. Hehehe!"

Koakuma rushes over and smashes a washtub on the blob's top, and while it falls like a dying fly to the ground, the little devil smiles and says "that is so~"

* * *

Back at the Garden of the Sun, Ail reaches Yuka's house and quickly takes notice it's been recently rebuilt. No surprise there, seeing as NegaAil did destroy it when he was there before.

He approaches the wooden door, which looks as plain as though it's been recently installed, then looks around the sky for any signs of Kurumi.

He looks back at the path he took and notices that where once were no flowers at all, there are now countless varieties covering the road, and not only that, all the flowers around him are looking at him.

This frightens Ail a bit, but he merely sighs it off and opens the door.

The house inside is like he remembers it in his Gensokyo, save for the missing white table between the kitchen and the living room.

As he walks inside he starts looking all around, missing the vines and flowers that used to cover that home's windows and ceiling within, while saying to himself "this feels so... wrong. I feel nostalgic, yet sad. Why is the feeling so strong?"

The boy suddenly drops on his knees, holds his head tight as the groans out loud, as though in great pain, and then more memories of that world drill themselves into his head.

He sees himself inside Yuka's room, looking at a large oval mirror with thin golden borders to the right and smiling vilely at himself, as if NegaAil knows Ail is looking at him, and is making his good self angrier on purpose.

"Why are you looking at that mirror? Pay attention over here or I'll kill you where you stand, you understand?"

The boy turns his gaze to Yuka, who sits on her bed in her pink pajamas, and holds a white cup filled with red tea she sips softly while maintaining a serene face.

NegaAil scoffs, then says "so, is that it? No fighting, no struggling... no tearing me limb from limb?"

The flower master glances at the boy, sips the last of the cup's content, then says "there's no use. You are abusing Reimu's talismans, you learned to control those dark powers, and worst of all, you closed up that brain of yours."

She shifts her legs on her bed under herself, looks out the window, and continues "I will tell this to you now: That which you seek cannot be attained so simply. My powers are amazing, there's no questioning that, but to create a child; it takes more than just magic and raw power, little man."

"I've had enough of you," barks the boy while swinging his arms around with fury. "You're just trying to confuse me!"

Yuka shrugs; a sly grin escapes her lips, then casually says "I rest my case. Just do what you came here to do and disappoint yourself with your own wasted efforts."

Before Ail realizes what happened, he sees himself gripping Yuka's neck tight and squeezing it with all his might; and shortly after the youkai's energy begins to rush into the boy's body.

Even when out of breath and dying, Yuka Kazami smiles while croaking "you will be sorry little man. You'll pay for what you did to Elly and Kurumi in a most delectable manner of tortu-"

Her words cut off after the last bit of her powers get absorbed into NegaAil's body and her own body disappears, becoming green sparkles the fly off to the air while her clothes fall onto the bed.

The vile boy laughs victoriously, opens his eyes while smiling viciously, claps his hands together, cups them, and a green ball of energy materializes between his slightly cupped hands.

His smile becomes wider as he laughs almost manically, and then he suddenly frowns as the energy shrivels up until it pops and disappears.

The boy's eyes unhinge as he laughs as though he were a madman, and he flies out of the house through the window while still laughing, grunts between his teeth "she knew! She knew and she tricked me! That's why she said it. She knew I wouldn't believe her! HAHAHA! YOU BITCH! YOU SICK, MANURE EATING BITCH!"

He starts shooting the house with his strongest danmaku formations while screaming curse, cusses, laughing and shedding tears, however all his shots are aimed at the base of the house instead of the second floor.

Ail stops the memory from showing any more and gasps as though having breathed in after being suffocated, then he starts to pat himself all over and pinching wherever he can reach.

Nothing happens by the time he stops pinching himself. He holds the right side of his face, starts to cry, and at the same time he thinks "_Ail, settle down! This is a fake world; Yuka is still alive out there! Now there's no time for this! I have to find Elly and Kurumi and see if I can make them understand._"

The boy breathes in a fast rhythm, calming himself down at a slow pace, and as he sniffles and rubs his nose with the back of his sleeved forearm, he moves his unwilling legs toward the stairs at the back of the living room.

"_Ail, focus! Yuka is not there, so let's not go up there! But then again, maybe she is! Y-yes! Let's go see!_"

The boy acts as though he's not thinking at all and continues moving toward Yuka's room after climbing the stairs.

He opens the door to it and quickly looks around while panting with extreme anxiety, wondering what he will find in there.

He looks to the right and spots the destroyed mirror tumbled over on its side, but ignores this and quickly scans the rest of the room, though stops and stares at the bed quickly after starting.

On the bed is a strange sunflower with long red and green petals and a pinkish green stem that's rooted to the mattress.

He walks over to the bed, lifts his hand so that his finger brushes lightly against the petals, closes his eyes, and then says "that which was stolen from you I will return, for it _never_ belonged to anyone else in the first place!"

Green waves of energy start to manifest on Ail's hand and slowly make their way to the flower.

"GET AWAY FROM MISS YUKA, YOU EVIL FREAK!"

Kurumi breaks through the window, grabs Ail by the shoulders, and pulls him outside of the house, all in just a few seconds.

Ail's voice can be heard getting fainter as he calls "noooooo! Yuka! Please, let me save Yukaaaaaa!"

* * *

Kurumi throws Ail to the ground after she feels they are far enough from the house.

Before he touches the ground, the bed of flowers under him become an actual bed that softens his fall, then they spring him back to the air as he shouts a "thank you!"

Once he's at the same height as the vampire, he desperately says "please, you have let me go back! I can bring Yuka back, I swear!"

He feels three blades cut his right cheek, and is now falling backward, head first to the ground where there are no flowers to save him.

After sliding on his back on the unforgiving hard ground, Kurumi licks the blood from her claws and says "you're not tricking me again, Ail. I am making you pay for all the things you have done to us, with your blood."

The boy slowly lifts his head and rubs his clawed cheek, then looks up as the vampire bares her fangs for him to see clearly before hissing "now hold still!"

He rolls to the left just before Kurumi's blur crashes on the ground and lifts a thick cloud of dirt, then opens a barrier to his left to bounce her back into the dirt cloud while he scrambles to get on his feet.

The little vampire roars after reappearing in the sky with a spell card in her hand, and shouts "revenge for Yuka! Blood-Thirst, 100 Years of Starvation!"

Kurumi's fangs grow twice their size, her claws glow blood red, and as soon as she is ready, she dives down toward the boy at blinding speeds with her claws spread and her mouth wide open.

Ail can easily read her trajectory, and merely steps aside and pushes her to the ground.

Once she's grounded, he hops back and shouts "listen to me, please! I am trying to help you!"

Kurumi stands up and seems to wobble as she stands, and when she's on her feet she turns her neck around with great effort, revealing a pair of crazed and starving eyes looking for the nearest prey.

Anilan understands what that spell has done, so he pulls a spell card out from under his left sleeve, carefully studies the blood-red bullets of different sizes materializing around him, and sadly says "I am sorry, Miss Kurumi, but I have to stop you, for your own good. Brightness, Overwhelming Heart."

The boy's chest begins to glow pure white, and shortly after, rings with large orbs dancing around them start to grow out of that light, consuming the blood-red bullets that were homing themselves toward him.

In her berserk rage, the blonde vampire screeches with rage and quickly jumps to the air and dives for the boy again; even though he's begging her to stop.

She breaks through the first ring almost immediately and cries out in terrible pain, but pushes through the second ring without pausing for a moment, grunts out loud as the orbs and the third ring burn her entire being, yet she continues.

When the fourth ring hits, her claws are a mere inch away from latching on the boy's hip, but the pure white light burns her up and flicks her away from her target, pushing her through the first three rings a second time.

Once again airborne, Kurumi shakes her head, recovering a bit of sense, and after noticing this, the boy shouts "Kurumi, cancel your spell! Cancel it before it's too late!"

The vampire grips her growling stomach, her wings flop weakly, making her lose altitude, and almost crying she replies "I-I can't! S-so... hungry!"

Her face becomes insane again, then she dives toward the boy, and this time she's using the magic in her claws to weaken the rings of light before going through them.

Ail has no choice and cancels his spell to move away, summons a small sword of light to his right hand, then swats away the speeding homing bullets while looking around for Kurumi.

He fails to see her anywhere so he tries scanning around with energy waves, but can't make anything out, other than the various flowers around him.

He feels a disturbance in the air above him and opens his eyes a moment too late, as Kurumi is a mere second away from impact.

"Yukarin-sama!"

Elly looks like a blur when she jumps between the boy and the vampire as she calls for her fallen mistress, creating an unneeded confusion as all three roll around the ground after contact is made with the blonde vampire.

Kurumi squeals with glee as she sucks out every inch of blood she can from the soft neck she's pressing her lips against, and then slows down when the realization slowly reaches her mind, yet can't stop herself from desperately feasting.

Ail slowly stands up behind the girls with a dark and depressed face while calling off his weapon; tears rolling down his cheek as he lets his body slump forward.

He drags his feet over to the girls, gulps down his desire to sob as he places his hands on the crying Kurumi's and Elly's heads, and with a cracking voice he cries "I told you to cancel it."

The blonde scythe wielder smiles as the last bit of life is being sucked out of her by her own friend, looks at Ail and begins to cry, then softly says "keep... Yu-Yukarin-sa-sama... safe. Please."

Kurumi starts to sob, and yet is still unable to stop herself from draining her friend from her life force, and after one loud sob she manages to cry a muffled "I'M SORRY!"

Elly's body fades, what little life force remained in her becomes sparks that float to the sky, and all the boy and vampire can do at the time afterward is stare at the spot where the blonde's body was a few moments before.

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere over at the summery Youkai Mountain, inside a large courtroom, Tenma, lord of the tengu, stares unblinking toward one spot in the room.

Other than a long black beard, and the silhouette of his hat and the puffs hanging under it, the rest of him is hidden in shadow.

He takes a deep breath, making himself look a little larger than normal, and with a dark tone of voice that seems to be holding back concern, he says "Momiji's report is in. The boy is at the Garden of the Sun. Shameimaru, the time has come."

Aya appears to materialize out of the wall itself. Her usually happy face is now plagued by hatred of life, her left wing is missing while he right one remains ever visible, and instead of cameras and film, her pockets are filled with weapons, explosives, and she now has a body belt with three combat knives sheathed on it.

She turns her hateful glare to the right toward Hatate, who quickly rushes over while whimpering with fright, and hands her comrade a thin silver spear.

Armed to the teeth, the ex-reporter turns her murderous gaze to Tenma and coldly says "victory or death; just as specified by the contract."

The tengu lord shifts uncomfortably, and with a doubtful tone he asks "are you sure about this Aya? I told you death was not a necessity. He is too powerful, you fought bravely, worthy of recognition in the Tengu Records!"

Aya turns around and walks toward the nearest window, jumps on the frame, then coldly says "if the unlikely event of my cowardly return were to occur, the guards are to terminate me on the spot. I am only allowed in with proof of his death."

She takes off without waiting for a reply and flies off with elegance and grace with a single wing, yet her speed is only half of what it used to be.

Momiji Inubashiri, a white wolf tengu with short white hair and ears, red eyes, a furry white tail, who wears a white detached-sleeves shirt and a black skirt with red fire adorning the bottom, looks up to the sky and moans sadly.

She knows she's at fault for giving the report, but she had no choice in that matter as it is her job.

She takes her red hat off, impatiently taps the long platform of her geta sandals on the rocks, and then asks herself "what's taking so long?"

Hatate flies to her right, nods as soon as she's acknowledged by the white wolf, then as soon as the wolf's sandal is replaced, they both fly off after Aya.

"So, like, why are you suddenly interested in helping her out, Momiji?"

The white wolf thinks carefully for an answer, then says "she's a comrade, whether I like it or not. It wouldn't feel right to just abandon her in her this time of need."

She glances over to the crow tengu and says "same question."

Hatate lets a half-smile escape her lips and says "she saved me from him. I can't just ignore that. I won't feel at ease until I've evened the score with her."

Momiji looks forward and breaks a smile with a scoff, then mutters "we're such proud fools."

* * *

Back at Yuka's house, Ail remains seated on an old white metal chair, while Kurumi paces around the living room, thinking the day's events over and over.

"Please Kurumi, listen to me," begs the boy. "Please let me go to Yuka. I can revive her!"

The blonde vampire stops pacing and glances over to the boy for a second, and then she sobs softly before saying "Elly is gone. I'm all alone. And it's entirely your fault. *Hic* I'm scared! Please stay with me forever!"

The boy stares back at her with piercing eyes and loudly says "you're not _listening_ to me! I can bring Yuka _back_! All you have to do is let me go to her room!"

"You'll be my most prized pet! I'll feed you, bathe you, play with you, and all you have to do is stay by my side like a good pet. It's easy, right?" Kurumi stares right through Ail as she speaks, as though speaking to someone else entirely.

Anilan has had enough, yet doesn't know how to get through to her, until something comes to mind that causes him to smile victoriously.

"Kurumi, I am hearing Yuka in my head right now. She wants to say something to you, so I'm going to let her through, ok?"

The vampire's yellow eyes quickly focus on the boy as a tiny gasp escapes her, then Ail shakes his head around for a bit, stops when facing away from the girl, then slowly turns his face, which has a mischievous set of eyes over a cynical and sadistic smile.

He bends his back just slightly, and with a sweet and soft, yet cold and dark tone of voice he says "well hello there Kurumi-chan, it's been a while."

The vampire's face turns blue and she gulps, yet remains silent.

"I saw what happened today, sweetie. I am so disappointed in you. You not only stopped this young man; whom I'd love to kill; from resurrecting me, you sucked dear Elly dry. I am... quite upset."

Kurumi starts to whimper, tears form under her eyes as she begins to shake in place, her lips wriggle as her mouth dries up, and then she stretches her wings as if preparing to run away.

The boy's smile becomes slightly sweeter, and continues "oh, no need to get so bent out of shape. Just let this boy up to my room so he can revive me, and we can be together again. I might even forgive you if you do this for me~."

Ail starts to shake his head around again as if trying to stretch then suddenly stops, looks at Kurumi with those pleading eyes, then says "come on Kurumi. Let me help."

The vampire's wings relax along with their owner, and the blonde girl makes her way to the boy, nods once, then says "you can go. But know that I don't trust you one bit! Make one wrong move, and your head comes off, GOT IT?"

The dense one smiles, nods, then looks down at his lap and says "so of course, that means you'll untie me, right? I can't really walk while tied to this chair.

True enough, Ail's hands are tied behind himself, while his legs are tied with chains on the chair's front legs.

Kurumi grins mischievously, then gets uncomfortably close to the unsettled boy, wraps her arms around his hips, then begins to undo the ropes around his arms.

The boy sighs with relief while thinking "_PHEW! Lucky she fell for that Yuka-possession bit. Ehehe, I think I'm going to try that on Elly when I get back home._"

* * *

That winter afternoon, at the Hakurei Shrine, the smiling Marisa enters the living room through the left door, and is quickly greeted by some lively disturbance.

"You are a man, so just fix the door and stop complaining!"

"I won't lift a finger unless I see compensation, Hakurei!"

The witch stares, her smile becomes a wide and annoyingly cheerful grin, and after a quick chuckle she says to herself "just like the old days, ze."

Reimu and Kyo stand next to the kotatsu; where Rika, Tenshi, Lykamei and Suzaku are staring at the two; arguing about fixing a door, and whether or not the shrine maiden is just trying to get free maintenance services from the boy out of spite.

Regardless of the shouting, Marisa lifts her hands and wiggles her fingers while greeting the staring girls, then asks "so, how long have they been at it? And has Reimu used her orbs yet?"

Kyo turns a fierce face at the witch and shouts "butt out black and white! This is between me and the red one!"

Reimu turns an annoyed face at her friend and angrily says "hey, he's the one that earned the balls on the face last time," then turns to face the boy and shouts "and _don't_ call me 'the red one'!"

The muscled boy turns his attention to the shrine maiden and shouts "speak properly! Those were yin-yang **_orbs_**! And for _your_ information, you are a lazy and _violent_ girl, and a cheapskate! Always been one!"

Marisa holds her belly as she laughs hard and makes her way to the staring girls and bird.

Without been asked, Tenshi says "it all started when they were talking about the money for the wedding."

As if in a trance, Rika continues staring at her mistress as she says "then Lykamei floated through the door and they just picked up on that."

"But I don't _live_ here anymore! I don't _have_ to do any chores, lazy-butt," exclaims Kyo with rage.

"Well, we're holding your wedding _here_, so you're technically mooching off me again," replies the black haired girl before starting a fit of coughs.

Kyo himself holds Reimu by the shoulders and helps her down a glass of water, pats her on the back and asks if she's alright, and when all is good again, he resumes his position and shouts "we're not mooching off! We're paying you!"

Suzaku bangs her head against the wooden table and telepathically speaks so the girls can hear her. "_This is hilariously painful to watch. I'm not even sure if it's ok to laugh, or if we should stop them before mom's health gets worst._"

Rika stands up while saying "I'll go stop them," when the back doors suddenly burst open, and Mima cheers a loud greeting while entering and closing the sliding doors again.

Everyone stares at the evil spirit as she floats her merry way toward Reimu, places her bright and smiling face next to the girl, then happily asks "hey Reimu, how ya' feeling? Isn't today great?"

The shrine maiden is understandably shocked with the surprise and tries to stammer questions about Suika, but before she can make actual words, the spirit grabs Kyo's right arm, squeezes it tight, and says "mmmmm, hunk, you're harder than last time."

After the inappropriate set of words, she quickly flies over to Marisa and presses her face against her former pupil while cooing "and there's my girl! Are you eating your vegetables? Did you find a rare mushroom? Oh, we have SO much to talk about, don't we!?"

Before the Ordinary Black and White can begin to talk, Mima is already flying to the left door and exclaiming "well, it's been fun, but I gotta run now! Bye~"

"_HEY!_"

Reimu's outburst turns all the attention to her, and without pause she asks "where's Suika!?"

The evil spirit snickers while covering her mouth with her hand, and with that usual naughty look on her face she says "she's taking a nap under a white blanket. Naughty thing craved a nice spanking before bed."

With those words out in the open, she waves her fingers at them all, and then dashes off toward the Human Village.

"Rika," commands Reimu, to which the shrine's maid obediently bows, and quickly goes off to find Suika outside.

The little oni in question is currently in front of one of Rika's training dummies in the back courtyard under a thick pile of snow, and next to her is Genji, the oversized, flying bearded turtle.

He studies the burn marks and bruises on the little oni's face and exposed arm, places his face closer to hers, then asks "so you had fun I presume?"

The girl lifts her shaky head and smiles at the turtle, then happily says "oh, you betcha!"

* * *

Back at the ghostly-quiet Garden of the Sun, Ail and Kurumi are in Yuka's room, and the boy stands in front of the bedridden sunflower he feels is Yuka herself, while the vampire stands close enough to attack him if he thinks of escaping.

He summons that wavy green energy to his right hand again, studies it for a moment, and then says "alright, this is it. It's time I gave you Yuka back."

"After what Elly did, you better do just that, or I swear to hunt you down until you become worm food!"

The vampire girl is angry, and Ail understands her reasons for being that way, though he wishes she would understand it's not him but his alternate self that caused her and Elly so much pain.

"_Maybe after Yuka's revived she'll understand,_" thinks the hopeful boy as he gets his hand closer to the flower's petal.

He suddenly feels as if he's frozen in place, an invisible wave threatens to twist his stomach, and seeing as he's unable to move his lips, he screams in his mind "_no! Don't reset, please! I'm so close! Don't do this to me!_"

The world around him spins like a huge maelstrom making him sick to his stomach, and then the scenery slowly thins down until there is nothing but darkness.

The world reappears again, still being in the afternoon, and Elly and Kurumi are walking out of the house, while the bedridden sunflower watches them from the window.

Meanwhile, Ail finds himself spinning in limbo, unsure of whether he's still a whole being or just a floating spirit.

He tries to look around, but it feels to him as though he's not even moving his head to scout his dark surroundings.

Everything is black, nothing is different, and in this maddening world, the dense boy can feel his own mind rapidly unhinging itself, so he foolishly does what he knows won't help.

"I need HEEEELP!"

As expected, his call remains unanswered and despair quickly claims him.

A ball of light appears before him just as his mind is about to break, then it stretches and takes the shape of Yuka almost instantly, yet remains as a shining specter of light.

He tries to speak, but she grips his mouth with her hand and says "yes, that bit of the world reset itself, both because of your damned failure, and my will."

She lets his its mouth go and continues "now listen, keep that energy in you while you are in here, or you'll break like a dry cracker in my vice grip; and now you shut up and listen."

She moves her ghostly eyes to meet with his golden ones and says "those three girls damaged this world a great deal. Ail, while you are stuck here, as this world is right now, you are in grave danger."

"I don't mean your life. Your body is safe. It's your heart, your mind, and your spirit that are in peril. You _must _protect yourself, and be ready for whatever may come: Death, deceit, and enemies that were once friends. BE READY!"

The boy feels himself blinking once, then manages to ask "wait, what do you mean? I thought I was sa-"

"You were right," interrupts Yuka. "This world is now shattered into pieces that, although joined, have their one timeline, season, etc., and it was all done to keep you safe and away from those places you already failed at. Well, except for the underground. You didn't really fail there."

Ail can feel himself widening his eyes in the surprise, then says "I knew it! I did succeed with Koishi and Orin, even with that dark me ruining everything! But then, why am I still here?"

Yuka grabs the boy by the hips, stares at him, then says "he's still in there; weak but alive. He'll be coming back soon. When he does, your workload will increase."

She releases the boy and floats away while continuing "I do not know why you are still here even though you succeeded, but you are here. Those three are still in here somewhere as well, and they can help you. We will try and make sure they do. Oh, and don't forget Yukari's warnings, but as things are, you might have to brave those waters."

The dense one gulps as fear takes him, then asks "you mean to say, that I may have to-"

The ghostly woman is already covering his mouth again, and whispers "you have to get more allies. You will _need_ help! The three dream demons can help, but they aren't enough, and could even become a liability. You need someone from outside too, as well as having at least one ally in here, not counting Reimu, or Rika."

She slowly backs away while facing the boy, playfully places her hands behind her back, and says "she's hunting you. You're going to have to defend yourself. Try not to kill them though, and try to keep NegaAil in check. And one more thing that you must remember; time here is now flowing differently from that of the outside."

The world around Ail turns white as he feels tired and about ready to go to sleep, and as he complies with his desires of rest, he says to himself "NegaAil? That's a fitting name for that bastard. Reminds me of a character, from a cartoon I used to watch. Still, wonder what did she mean about that '_time_' bit?"

* * *

That night, another snowstorm makes Letty Whiterock; a yuki-onna with lavender curly hair and eyes, whom wears a white hat and a white and blue outfit; cackle like a maniac in the middle of the Misty Lake.

Meanwhile, at one of the SDM's living rooms, Flandre and Remilia stare at each other from their large red seats that are set in front of each other, while Sakuya, Kimi and Meiling enjoy the fire they started for their own comfort at the fireplace at the back.

The blonde vampire narrows her left eye a bit, and the light-blue haired vampire responds with a soft scoff and a smug smile.

Flandre's face begins to sink as she shyly backs away, while Remilia remains as she was, not blinking even once.

"OKAY, ALRIGHT! You win," cries the little sister, throwing her arms in the air out of frustration.

The mistress of the mansion chuckles again, then says "now remember, it's two days down there in nothing but your underwear, and you must eat the natto every night, _without_ spitting a single bean, potty mouth."

The little sister sobs and cries "it's not fair." She gets off the chair, grips her sister's arm as she look up with teary eyes, and exclaims "I told you the truth! That Azzhara cat is evil! He says he loves me, but he tortures me out of revenge! Remi, please! You have to believe me!"

Remilia looks down at her little sister's pleading eyes for a moment without saying a word, gently combs that blonde hair; secretly blocking out her sister's charms; closes her eyes with a sigh, then opens them again, looking gentle yet stern.

"Flan, your claims are a bit outrageous and really hard to believe, but more importantly you seem to forget that you are Flandre Scarlet! If you want us to believe such claims, you are going to have to capture that cat in the act, and show us all the truth."

Flandre's face drops as she complains with a loud moan, to which Remilia taps the back of her sister's head and says "op! No childish complaints. Now carry out your punishment like a _true_ Scarlet!"

The little sister sighs sadly and mutters "yeah, yeah. I'm going," then makes her way back to the basement.

The servants look to the blonde vampire with sad faces, but they all know it is not their place to say anything, so they look away just as a dark grey washtub falls on her head and knocks her out, and then Azzhara scrambles to her in cat form, bites her shirt's collar, and pulls her away into the darkness.

Regardless of anything, Kimi is just about to open her mouth when Sakuya herself covers her up and whispers "no, don't! You have no place in there! You are a serv-er, guest!"

At that very moment, Remilia barks a command and her loyal chief maid is immediately in front of her, bowing elegantly while asking "how may I serve you, My Lady?"

Remilia's current smile becomes a wide grin, and with a bit of admiration she says "always so well prepared, my chief maid."

Sakuya bows her head and softly says "your praise is not needed, but it's gladly accepted My Lady."

The vampire chuckles softly, and with that proud smile on her face she says "right, it's time we separated the Kori twins from Patchouli and Koakuma, or we'll never hear the end of their whining come next year. Sakuya, get Leon and Lina working on some chores outside the library, and make sure those two don't go looking for them, understood?"

The silver haired maid bows and says "it will be done as you have asked," then disappears in a flash, while Remilia's smile vanishes, sighs, and then says to herself "this mansion's becoming too lively. It's not fitting for my image."

She looks at the gate guard and her somewhat-reformed shadow self, and then sighs again.

* * *

At the same time, at the snowy Bamboo Forest; where the snowstorm is weakened due to the thick concentrations of bamboo; Kaguya is stomping hard on the ground while roaring loudly, then looks up to the sky and shouts "you are cheating! That's the only way they could have stayed as your fans for so long!"

From the sky, Mokou flips her hair at her immortal rival, then says "you're just jealous that _MY_ noble female charm has a better effect and _your_ crummy Moon Royalty charm. Admit it; you've aged badly while I've aged perfectly well; like _good_ wine!"

The light-lilac haired girl grunts as she suddenly moves to the right in order to avoid a multi-colored shower of bullets, then shouts "hey, quit it! You might hurt them!"

On the ground behind Mokou, her large fan club, which now consists of rabbits, human, youkai, and some fairies shivering in thick coats, all cheer for their beloved immortal, while said girl looks back and shouts "ARE YOU PEOPLE STUPID!? Get goin' so we can fight!"

The ex Moon Princess has jumped over and grips the distracted immortal's shoulders, and then pushes her to the ground while shouting "no! Let them watch! We'll settle this the OLD-FASHIONED WAY, grandma!"

They crash-land on the ground and start struggling against each other, gripping each others' clothes and threatening to rip them off while rolling on the snow, where Mokou shouts "well look who's talking, great-great grandma of the moon!"

"That's it, you're _DEAD_, you pathetic human," screeches the black haired girl as she grips her opponent's butt."

The immortal human yelps and jumps away from her attacker, while Kaguya wiggles her fingers around, gasps, then screams "IT'S SO SOFT AND SQUISHY!"

"DON'T SCREAM THAT OUT LOUD, YOU PERVERT!" replies Mokou with intense rage.

The spectators start to cheer for their favorite girl, lowering Kaguya's morale only slightly, while Tewi snickers as she pockets a thick pack of paper money, and happily walks away while humming a nice tune as her ally and the bamboo immortal rip each others' clothes to shreds.

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Ayalina, Azzhara (pronounced Atz-ara), Lykamei, Kyo, Kimi, Leon and Lina were created by Willie G.R.

Ail's spell card: "Brightness, Overwhelming Heart";

Ayalina's spell card: "Flowery Bitch-Slap for the Fair Maiden"; and

Kurumi's spell card: "Blood-Thirst, 100 Years of Starvation"; were created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami and Suzaku were created by Snapshot 2010

AUG 31 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**This extreme delay can be blamed on many things: Real life, Kingdom Hearts 3D, and New Super Mario Bros. 2. Oh yes, the 3DS has been the best handheld for me so far (haven't tried PS Vita yet), and it keeps distracting me. That aside, I hope you are enjoying this story so far, and do hope you'll continue reading. And as for other works... well since I'm being so damned slow, I think I should cut back on them... for now.**

**Oh, and for those that don't know, seems my crossover had a riff made (without my knowing at first). It seems they hated reading my story so much, they stopped making fun of it. Well, maybe they stopped because they were also giving me good advertisement and a raise in reader numbers for said story. Oh well, anyways, let's see just how long my next chapter takes to be posted.**

* * *

Flandre: Willie, you bastard! You're so lucky I can't kyuu you for real, or you'd NEVER post another chapter like that again! And what's with treating me like a punching bag! I aught-a-

Me: Whoa, whoa there Flan! I told you this is all just in good fun, but you'll see! You'll like where this is going! I promise you!

Flandre: You promise?

Me: Cross my heart and hope to die!

Flandre: *Hugs Willie until his imaginary bones crack* Awwwww! I'll hang on then!

Remilia: Flan, don't touch that pervert! He's riddled with disgusting thoughts! Ask Satori!

*Flandre drops the limp Willie to the floor with a disgusted look*

Satori: Actually, his thoughts are quite normal for a loner.

Remilia: You see Flandre? That boy is sick to the head!

Flandre: Ewwww~ to think I touched him!

Satori: You're not really listening to me, are you?

*Flandre and Remilia leave the set while Remilia thinks of Flandre's panties*

Satori: Sometimes I wish I didn't have my mind-reading powers. *Walks over to Willie and bends her knees beside him, then takes his 3DS out of his pocket* I suppose you won't mind if I play a bit.

*Satori starts playing Kingdom Hearts 3D and immediately starts losing on purpose*

Satori: *Giggles* Whoops. It seems I used up all your rare items. Hmm, let's see what else I can do. Awww, this spirit reminds me of Okuu. Oh my... it's dead.

Willie's mind: _Noooooooo! Satori, what are you doing!? No fair! Make your own file, dammit!_

Satori in sing-song: I can't hear you~

Willie's mind: _I'll get you back for this!_


	8. Chapter 8

NOTE: There are quite a few flashbacks in this chapter. Also keep in mind there's strong language ahead.

Legend: [_i_] = a sudden thought between the dialogue, or Ail/NegaAil talking to the one in control of Ail's body.

{_i_} = Touhou character speaking to Ail/NegaAil in his mind.

Jan 06 2013 - This one took some effort! There were some Huge errors when I mentioned Mima's time being unconscious, but that's fixed, as well as some things during Aya's flashback with Tenma, AND made some modifications to the flashback with Reimu and Tenshi.

* * *

Three days have passed when Mima returns to the Hakurei Shrine, and it appears that along with her return, the snowstorms that were punishing the land of Gensokyo with layers of snow leave surprisingly quietly.

The spirit, whom is high in the sky, observes as how Rika is shoveling the snow off the roof of the shrine, while Suika and Tenshi are working on clearing the stone paths of any snow. Whether the latter two girls are doing so willingly remains a mystery.

On the small, snow-covered stairs to the donation box sits Lykamei with Suzaku to her side, and the little ghost girl keeps moaning as though she's having the worst stomach ache ever.

Interested in the little spirit, Mima decides to land near the girl.

The evil spirit stares at the dark ghost and watches with interest as her head flops around a bit while she moans.

Suzaku looks at the green haired woman as though asking for help, and says "_she's been like this since dawn. Do you know what's wrong with her?_"

Mima nods once, and says "she's been on this side of the world for too long. She needs to go back home."

She looks away and holds her forehead with her fingers, then says "frankly I'm surprised this young entity lasted so long on these holy grounds."

Lykamei looks up at Mima with distant eyes, moans softly, then sadly and softly says "I want Yuyuko-sama."

"Well, it's a good thing I came along after all, isn't it Youmu?"

The black ghost gasps out loud as a large smile rapidly covers her face, then she launches herself straight toward the shrine's gates, excitedly exclaiming "YUYU-MAMAAAA!"

The girl latches on to Yuyuko's hips, and rubs her face on the princess' belly while moaning contently with her eyes closed.

The pink-haired woman giggles while rubbing the girl's head, then says "oh my, how affectionate," turns her face to her right to look at Youmu and sweetly adds "we should have come a little sooner. She's at her limit; the poor thing."

She starts scratching the happy girl's head while the gardener grumbles "that's what I was trying to tell you these past three days."

To everyone's surprise, Reimu stands right where Lykamei was sitting just a few seconds before, and before Mima can ask "where did you come from?" the Hakurei Maiden says "I was starting to worry. This little one wasn't going to last another day. Seriously, you need to be more responsible."

Yuyuko picks the little dark skinned ghost up, giggles and says "I am here now, aren't I? Don't worry though, we won't linger. She needs to get back home immediately."

Rika jumps off the roof and lands on the ground in front of her mistress, stands up with a sad face, and says "aww. And I wanted to spend a little more time with her."

"Don't worry," begins Youmu with a straight look on her face. "You may come visit her whenever you may want. Just make sure to announce yourself before you come to Hakugyokurou."

The shrine's maid bows to the swordswoman and thanks her for the invitation, then walks over to the ghostly princess and the little girl and scratches Lykamei's head while cooing her goodbyes; and then it hits her.

She looks at Reimu with surprise, walks to her until she's just reaching the steps, then asks "My Lady, you knew about this? Wh-why didn't you tell me about it? I would have gladly taken her home myself."

The shrine maiden scratches her head while looking back at her maid with a bit of surprise, then says "so you hadn't noticed? Rika, she was absorbing my illness all this time. Why do you think I got healthy so suddenly? And didn't you notice she stopped being mischievous since I got sick?"

Reimu's face displays the error of her choice of words with shock, while Rika's own face shows her self-disappointment as tears roll down her cheeks.

"Oh my Hakurei god, how could I have been so blind? I'm such a terrible host and friend! I should have noticed this immediately, and yet I didn't!"

She turns around to face the little ghost and cries out "Lykamei, I'm so sorry! Can you forgive-?", but her words end up being unneeded.

While Rika panicked, Yuyuko had walked closer with the little girl on hand, and said girl grabs Rika's face after she quiets down, kisses her on the cheek, and with a dreamy look as she goes back to rest her head on the princess' shoulder she softly says "thank you for everything Rika-chan. Please come visit me soon."

With those words the little ghost girl falls asleep, then Yuyuko chuckles lightly and says "it's time to go. Thank you for taking care of this little soul, and for teaching her _that_ which I cannot understand."

She bows her head slightly, then takes flight on her own, while Youmu walks in front of the maid, whispers "thank you. And let's have a quick round next time," then takes off flying after her princess.

Meanwhile, Rika remains standing still on the same spot on the ground while looking distant, blinks twice as she slowly recovers from that surprise, smiles dearly as she turns to her mistress, then says "I already miss her."

Mima is about to comment on the events when she suddenly sighs and drops face-down on the snow.

The shrine maid and shrine maiden stare at the knocked-out evil spirit, and then the angelic maid exclaims "what just happened to her? Miss Mima, can you hear me!?"

She quickly kneels besides the knocked out woman to see if she can assist in any way, when Reimu merely face palms and says "just bring her inside!"

She notices Tenshi standing to her left and softly commenting "what the heck is going on here?"

Reimu stares at the celestial for a while, paying very close attention to her forehead, then asks "you're not exploding and turning into a peach or something random like that, right?"

Hinanai stares silently at the red and white before her; unable to come up with a snarky comeback, comment, answer, or any kind of way of communicating the confusion in her mind at the moment; and merely shakes her head and walks away.

As she makes her way to the right side of the shrine, the celestial loosens up and lets unknown sadness take over her face, and unknown to her, Reimu notices the heavy feelings on the blue haired girl, yet remains quiet about it.

* * *

The single-winged Shameimaru flies over the skies of the now-erratic replica of Gensokyo, and after passing through a snowy night, she reaches a fresh autumn morning when her mind starts to drift, and her eyes turn bloodthirsty.

She growls softly to herself when she starts remembering her last encounter with NegaAil:

**FLASHBACK**

She flies high above the Youkai Forest in search of a scoop, frustrated over the lack of such, thanks to Maribel's and Renko's quick interventions on every incident.

She's about to head on home when she hears Hatate squawking in pain nearby, and grins victoriously when she thinks she just found herself a good scoop, but even her victory grin rubs off her face the moment she arrives to the scene.

Ail is holding Hatate by her neck while viciously kicking her stomach and trying to pull her camera from her hand, demanding she erases the photos inside.

"Alright, that's IT! If you won't let it go..." He shouts these words out loud before the tengu starts screaming loud enough to be heard over at the Tengu village, but her voice quickly dies out, and Aya knows what he is doing.

She takes a dive and aims herself straight at the boy's back, but the vile boy sees her in time to move and get hit on the shoulder instead, giving the seasoned reporter harder recoil damage; but the girl succeeds in stopping the boy from sucking Hatate's life force dry.

Shameimaru rubs her sore shoulder as she gets off the ground, and opens her eyes just as the injured boy crushes Hatate's cell phone with his right hand, right after standing up.

She can see he's going to attack her comrade again, so she launches herself at him, only this time her aim is not the boy but the space between him and Hatate, making him jump away from them before he can continue absorbing the last of Hatate's life force.

"Ail, what the fuck is that?" grunts the black haired tengu through her teeth. "What the hell is the matter with you? Why are you trying to kill her?"

Anilan turns his red eyes on the lively tengu before him, and with deep hatred behind his dark voice, he says "she had pictures of _my_ Reimu crying her pain out! She didn't have the right to have them, so I told her to _ERASE_ those pictures!"

He moves his eyes to the semi-conscious crow girl on the floor behind Aya and says "she didn't comply, so I had to force some _sense_ into her; and now I plan to make sure none of you tengu bother Reimu ever again!"

Aya raises an eyebrow after listening to the boy, discretely places her right hand on her maple fan behind herself, and says "so, you disregard Reimu's own spell card rules just to make a point? And you even dare attempt unjust murder in her name? I am seriously disgusted by you right now, Anilan."

The boy responds with a grunt as he summons a tainted blade of light, which is surrounded by a dark orange glow, and then he launches himself at Aya, who only has enough time to swing her fan and blow the boy away from herself and Hatate.

She quickly follows after him and swings her fan on his back, forcing him farther away from Hatate and closer to the trees.

Ail uses the tree he's supposed to crash on to, to kick himself out of the strong gales and toward the tengu, with his magical weapon raised as he grunts between his teeth "you'll pay for getting in my way."

She ducks under his squiggly sword then flashes his face with her camera, and when he's on the floor and spitting out grass, with genuine worry she exclaims "Ail, what's the matter? Are you possessed, o-or maybe you just need to talk. C-come on, I don't want to fight with you!"

The boy stands up with Reimu's tainted charms on his left hand, and with a murderous and hateful look on his face he shouts "you claimed to be Reimu's friend and yet you haven't gone visit her _ONCE_ now that she needs you! I'll make you and your kin suffer for that!"

"ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO YOURSELF TALK!?"

Aya's shriek is so loud, Ail has to cover his ears to stand the voice, but before he can recover and attack, the tengu continues shouting "Ail, you are the one that told me to get away from her! You are the one that kept me and the others from getting close to her! Now you are holding it against us that we don't visit in her time of need, _AND_ demand we leave her alone at the same time? Shut the fuck up and think, Anilan! It's not _us_ that are the problem, it's _YOU!_"

The thick-headed fiend roars as he lunches to her with all his fury and swings his sword at her neck.

The crow girl manages to bend backward in time to dodge the attack, but the dirty boy kicks her groin and throws a charm at her while she's bouncing off the dirt.

Aya flips backward on to her feet, launches herself after the boy, then fakes an uppercut to kick him under the chin while he's dodging the punch, and sends him flying to the sky, seemingly unaware of her wings revealing themselves and slowly stretching to full size.

Ail shakes his head as he flies upward and recovers himself from the blow, and now fakes still being dazed so that Aya gets close, and as soon as that tengu is near he stabs her on the left of her chest with his weapon of light.

To his surprise she merely grunts softly, grabs his wrist, and grips it until it cracks, then punches him with her fan hand, sending him flying far away from herself.

She barely has time to nurse her open wound before the vile boy is already on her with a spell card ready and with his Yozoragan blood limit activated while he shouts "Darkness, Dance of the Black Lights!"

His ethereal dragon wings become solid and turn black, his eyes change to look like a red moon's night, his skin darkens to the point of looking almost black, and his hair becomes pitch black.

A black flame appears on his chest, and from it grows several rings that turn to sharp and pointy legs that wrap themselves around the brave tengu reporter.

Aya only has the chance to move slightly to the left before she realizes she's trapped, and just as she's about to try and break free, she screams when rapid beams from those legs pierce her flesh and expand when under her skin, making her feel as though her very bones are being sawed into bits.

The dirty fighter goes as far as attacking the most sensitive spots on her body, and makes sure there are at least two beams stabbing those points while he grips her face with his nails.

Her screams muffle when black bullets in the shape of arrows blow up all over her face and thighs, and yet the seasoned tengu manages to fight the pain enough to move her fan hand slightly, and propel herself away from the murderous boy with tornado winds.

Once free, she takes her camera out of her pocket and throws it into a nest on one of the trees while glaring with hatred toward the boy, then launches herself at full speed with a spell card on hand and shouting "Peerless Wind God!"

Before she reaches the darkened NegaAil, the wind around her body turns bright red, her speed increases to the point of making herself invisible to the naked eye, and in just a couple of seconds she manages to tackle Ail at least five times.

Though it appears she has the upper hand, merely touching the boy hurts her while his spell card remains active, yet she continues attacking relentlessly as they slowly descend, and when just a few feet from the ground, the black claw-like legs around the boy gather before him and crash against the tengu's energy.

Both Ail and Aya grunt as they fight to see whose willpower will win this current struggle, and then everything turns white and all sound around them mutes.

After a few minutes of this maddening and deafening blinding light, one silhouette can be seen towering over another while grabbing hold of something long and wide from the fallen shadow's back.

NegaAil is standing on the weakened Aya's back and is holding on to her left wing, smiling viciously with a look of expectancy.

He stomps her butt and spine repeatedly while saying "now! I'm! making you! pay back! WITH HUMBLING HUMILIATION!"

His last dirty kick causes Aya to scream like a hurt child, and shortly after a jolting pain on her upper back traps her screams just below her throat.

Her skin turns paler than ever and her eyes unhinge as she drools over the failed screaming attempt, while the evil boy laughs manically after throwing away her twitching wing.

He takes another one of Reimu's tainted charms and brutally stuffs it in the bloody hole left by the missing wing, laughing triumphantly; however his laughter is short lived.

In her despair, Aya pushes herself off the ground and uses her own body to strike that vile fiend between his legs, giving him a taste of his own medicine.

While he rolls in pain on the ground, she stands and walks over to him as she slowly recovers from her mind-breaking pain, kicks him on the ribs, then proceeds to search for her fan to deliver a killing blow.

The rest of the memory becomes a blur, and all she can remember is having the boy squeezing her chest while pushing her back to the ground before a wolf tengu scares him off with a deadly sword-swing.

**FLASHBACK END**

* * *

Ail wakes up with a gasp on the orange grass next to the same tree he saw in the vivid dream he just had about the fight with Aya.

He rubs his eyes as he sniffles, then says to himself "he didn't have a single reason to do that. She even tried to talk some sense into him, [_That bitch got what she deserved! Damned wolf tengu got to us just as the getting got good too!_] and he just-"

The dense boy slowly realizes what he just heard, and cold fear quickly takes his heart.

[_Did you really think I was gone? Please; even Yuka warned you about me. But whatever, it's none of my concern. My concern now is you, and destroying everything you are, Ail. This world is mine, and a pissy goodie-two-shoe like you isn't taking this away from me!_]

Anilan smiles as he stands up, chuckles as he makes his way to the river, kneels on the edge, looks into the water until he is able to see a bit of his reflection, and says "no NegaAil. You are just a created figment of this world, and once I get out of here I am making sure Shikieiki has her way with you; and I am _sure_ she'll love erasing you from this world's existence."

The boy stays there, waiting for a reply that never comes, so he splashes his face with the cool water, gets on his feet, then starts walking upstream, wondering where he should be headed next.

{_Ail? What in the world? Ail, is that you, or am I dreaming? And what was that dark thing I felt just now?_}

"Mima?" he exclaims excitedly, only to stop, frown and think, then add "w-wait, are you the real Mima, or this world's Mima?"

{_Ail, that IS you! As dense as ever I see! Hmm, this is odd. It appears our minds are connected directly. Good! How are things on your side?_}

The boy stops as a vein pulsates on his forehead, then he clenches his shaking right fist as he says "dammit all, Mima! I've been going through hell; first with the deaths of friends, then the insane resets, a _sickeningly disgusting_ part of myself I rather set fire on, I'm on the verge of stabbing myself with a sharp rock to see if I wake up, and now I'm talking to you and I can't be certain if you are the real Mima or not! THAT'S HOW THINGS ARE ON MY SIDE!"

He kneels again, looks up to the sky as if looking at the evil spirit and continues "and if you _really_ are the real Mima, tell me how in Eiki's name you got past this world's magical barriers in the first place!"

{_Eeehhh... so you remember everything? This is not good. Oh man, I need to wake up and contact that Yama! You aren't supposed to remember these things! Wait, you're right! I'm not supposed to be able to contact you either! What's going on in there!?_}

"Mima, it IS YOU! Wait, you're sleeping?"

{_Unconscious. Apparently, your distressed little mind pulled me in here by force... and I can't get out._}

Ail's eyes become two little black marbles as he smiles disturbingly and weakly says "so you're stuck in my mind along with that damned perverted psychopath that's actually the _me_ from this world?"

{_That seems to be the case, dear._}

"And she says that so casually! Aren't you [_Who are you calling a psychopath, you wuss!_] the least bit concerned? {_Don't call him names! He's **you** after all._}

Anilan's eyes hide under a shadow as the two entities in his head start arguing about name-calling, and leave the boy unable to think or say anything that could shut them up.

[_Well, it's not MY fault the three spirits messed things up after HE succeeded!_]

And that did the trick. Both Mima and NegaAil remain silent long enough for the dense boy to pick up on the nearby tengu and kappa energies.

{_Wait a minute. Ail, if you succeeded in convincing someone, regardless of any intrusion, the gap youkai and the Yama should have let you out! That was the principal agreement!_}

"Well I don't know what happened then..." begins the boy with a low and sad tone, "but I do understand now the true severity of my actions before. I really did a number back there... and I deserve this."

{_Don't start talking like that, Ail! We'll get you out of there, I promise! I'm here with you now, and as soon as I figure out how to get out, I'll go and get those bitches to get you out of here!_}

"Shit; the Kappa!"

{_What's going o-oh crap! RUN!_}

The boy quickly gets on his feet and starts running away from the river as it rises in the form of large tendrils with sharp edges and tips; a sign that the kappa know of the boy's presence, and aren't very happy about it.

Shortly after he starts running a pair of black eggs bounce once on the ground before him and explode the very next second, pushing the boy straight back toward the threatening waters.

One of the many tendrils catches his left ankle, lifts him up high, then he can hear a meek and high pitched-voice cheer "yay! We got 'im Nitori!"

Shortly after, out of all the blue, black, blonde and green-haired kappa that reveal themselves, Ail pays more attention to Nitori Kawashiro, who seems to be the currently leader of the pack of kappa before him.

Like most of the other kappa she has blue eyes, wears a green cap with a white squiggle on the front, a long-sleeved light-blue vest over a white shirt, a light-blue skirt with many pockets on the bottom borders, and light-blue wellington boots.

Unlike the other kappa, her hair is a darker, but shinier shade of blue, she ties it into twin-tails with red bobbles, and she carries a larger dark-green backpack with black straps that are tired around a golden key on her chest.

"Good work," begins the little kappa leader. Let's chuck him back to the village before he breaks free again."

As she says this, the other kappa whimper in fear as they point behind Nitori.

Ail is free and is squatting behind the girl, and stares curiously while saying "come on Nitori, that was a little too much. I mean, I guess NegaAil almost destroyed your village so I kinda..."

By now, the kappa is shivering with fear after realizing the boy is right behind her, while said boy muses over his thoughts and continues "on second thought, let me try that again. Ahem! Hi there Nitori. I'm the good Ail. I'm not here to cause any trouble; I'm just looking for someone to help me get back home."

A pair of mechanical arms rise from Nitori's backpack and grab Ail by the shoulders, and in less than a second the boy is flipped in the air and smashed on the hard ground on his back.

He quickly recovers from his daze while the kappa argue over how to tie him up properly, but then he shouts "LOOK OUT" and the girls all run away, thinking he's attacking them.

The boy rapidly summons a blue barrier over himself and the running Nitori's head that blocks several vicious danmaku shots meant to cause severe damage.

Meanwhile, high above, Aya flies in a counterclockwise circle above the boy while holding a knife on her left hand, and leaving the right one free for other optional attacks.

* * *

Aya looks down at Ail from high up in the sky, giving him her most hateful of stares while she remembers the humiliation he put her through long after their fight:

**FLASHBACK**

She remembers being carried to the village by the wolf tengu that saved her, enduring as said character constantly reminded her of how much she reeked of human over specific points on her body, and how the wolf girl chuckled softly at the crow's expense every time she could.

She remembers a few days later how one of the few Yamabushi Tengu that knew the old methods of healing constantly made her cry out like a hatchling every time he attempted to remove the charms preventing her wing from growing back.

What pains her most about that specific memory is when that very healer manages to take the charms out from under her muscles and tells her "I've done all I can. Only the one that put these in you can remove them safely. Now tell me again how in the world a kid got behind you, the so-called fastest in Gensokyo?"

She remembers how her hatred grew each day, and how it reached the point of madness the day she had to report to Lord Tenma.

How she wished she could kill the others, who whispered rumors of her weakness while she made her way to their leader's house.

She felt sickened when she discovered the others Karasu Tengu started printing false rumors of her being Anilan's lover in their papers, all due to that white wolf's so-called discovery, and that the boy was trying to force his way on her when he _accidentally_ broke her wing off.

She now remembers how dark Tenma's house seemed to her that day, when in fact it was as bright as it has always been.

"Shameimaru, don't hang your head so low. Be proud; you fought bravely for your comrade against a most despicable enemy, who fought dirty and dishonorably to the very end. Your battle was admirable, and you remained honorable, despite his repeated dishonorable assaults."

"Admirable!?" barks Aya back at their bearded leader, doing all she can, and more, to keep herself from shouting obscenities and curses out of frustration.

"They are all _laughing_ behind my back, spreading sick rumors, making fun of my fallen wing, and worst of all, they are saying that... half-youkai thing is my lover!"

"All these idiots deserve to be punished, but oh-ho-ho, I'll do something better! I'll show them all how strong I really... really..."

Despite her best efforts to remain calm, she keeps losing her temper and loses her current train of thought when she fights to keep herself leveled.

A tear rolls down her darkened eye as she shouts "the shame is unbearable! Please, let me outside again! M-Maybe if I get some news; perhaps a repo-"

"ENOUGH!" commands her leader. He takes a deep breath to recover from the outburst, and then calmly says "I don't recall hearing about that, but let me deal with those rumors Aya. You have enough to deal with already, concerning your healing. Focus on restoring your wings and forget. about. revenge!"

The girl flinches at the mentioning of revenge; making her secret desires clear to Tenma; then her leader continues "I can see it all over your face as plain as the sun's light. You want revenge on the boy, but that will lead you to death, and quite possibly lead US to war with the humans."

She turns her head away to the door of the house, wondering whether she should just rush off and take her revenge either way, but that's when she remembers her lost wing has cost her a most precious asset; her speed.

"No Shameimaru, don't do it. Even at your full speed, the second you're out that door, I will personally catch you and lock you up in the dungeons."

She turns her face back to her lord to show him she's not afraid of trying anyways, even though her eyes appear to suggest terror at the time.

Tenma places his hand on his forehead as he sighs, and then he sadly says "I understand. It's a matter of pride. Please listen to me Aya. You are hurt; weakened in your current state. I want you to rest, heal that wound so that it stops ailing you, and train hard so that your current handicap doesn't hinder _you_ when the time comes."

She squints her eyes in order to get a better look at his own silver ones while thinking on what to say, but before she can speak, Tenma continues "I will make a contract with you now, you will sign it, and when the time comes and you are ready, you can go and take your revenge; however, Aya, I want you to think this through, please."

The crow tengu remains silent; her eyes showing steeled determination; so with another sigh the tengu lord continues "fine then. I will leave this contract up for change in case you decide to listen to reason-"

"Where do I sign?"

Tenma is surprised by the cold and dark tone of voice used to interrupt his speech by the girl before him, and after another sigh in defeat, he offers her his hand and says "this will do for now. Wait until I have written the official contract before you start your training."

Aya quickly accepts his hand and is surprised it's far gentler than she thought it was, and right after the shake, the lord says "you may leave to your house now. Rest well, Shameimaru, and don't you dare leave the village without my consent."

* * *

Aya's red eyes become filled with murderous intent while she stares at the fallen boy below her, feeling a sting in her heart after remembering such humiliation to her person.

She dives straight at Ail with her knife held sideways as she opens her other hand in the form of a claw that is quickly surrounded by a dangerous looking wind aura.

Ail rolls away at the last possible moment and avoids getting mauled by the now-orangey claws, and saves his neck from the almost invisible swipe from that knife.

He stands up and takes a defensive position; ready to summon a barrier at any moment; and softly whispers "Aya? W-wait, you got the wrong Ail!"

{_You do realize that you are merely adding fuel to the fire here, right?_}

[_You see what I've had to deal with all this time, Mima? This kid's dumb._]

"You two shut up! Aya, listen to me, I'm telling you the truth!"

He raises a blue barrier in a split second to stop three black spider-like devices that latch on to said barrier and start beeping as their heads start flashing red.

They explode with enough force to weaken the barrier, then the tengu herself comes after the boy with that knife surrounded with orange gales that easily slice that weakened barrier in half.

[{**_RUN_**}]

Ail tries to follow orders, but the crow tengu has him by the neck and throws him to the air before he can react, then follows by throwing three more knives at him afterward.

The boy manages to place a barrier fast enough to block two of the knives, and groans out loud when the middle one thrusts itself into his stomach.

{_AIL, FOCUS!_}[_HEY! Take better care of my body, you twit!_]

{_Stop calling him names young man, _[_I'll call the idiot whatever I want!_]_ or I'll have to spank you with my **RIGHT** hand!_}

The dense one falls on the ground on his side and quickly scrambles on to his feet, ignoring the pain of the knife on his stomach so as to avoid yet another one of those egg-like grenades that blows up just after he runs away.

{_And another thing; he's having to fight HER because of what YOU did, therefore _[_Put a lid on it, lady! That crow bitch had it coming; and if it weren't for the wolves..._] _you should show your support to him and aid him!_}[_...she would be MINE! She would have made a strong child for me and Reimu!_]

Ail manages to run away far enough to avoid the blast from the next grenades, pulls the knife out of his stomach, but then the raging tengu swoops down from the side and cuts his right calf, forcing him to limp behind a tree while she showers it with orange bullets.

He grips his head and shouts "would you two shut the hell up already! [_Oh sure! Like I didn't try asking that vampire bitch to change our fates!_] {_All I'm saying is you should have held that head of yours in place and asked around nicely._} I'm trying to keep myself **_alive_** here!"

{Oops. S_orry._}[_Yeah, yeah... just fight._]

"So you lost your mind, huh Ail? Hearing voices inside your dark little head?" mocks the ex-reporter from atop the tree. "It's still not enough. I'll take your life and go back to the village with my honor and my pride restored!"

Ail pulls a spell card out of his pocket, but has to roll away from a spiked net and green shard-bullets that fall from the tree, shoots his own focused exploding bullet at the top branch, and watches as Aya flies off it right after the branch explodes.

He only has enough time to move left to avoid getting crushed by that large branch before the tengu swoops down again, picks him up by the neck, and takes him up to the sky with her.

She tightens her grip enough to cut the air from reaching his lungs, presses the blunt side of her knife on his chest, pokes his skin with the tip until she draws blood, and sinisterly whispers "I will make sure to make you scream loud enough for all to hear; I'll make you scream like a _GIRL_! Honor and pride will be _mine_ again!"

{_Wow, you really pissed her off. I swear, if I had my hands with me, I'd strangle you until you croaked like a fairy, NegaAil!_}

[_Oh man, I missed your threats. It's a shame you went to live with Maribel and Renko, instead of staying with me and Reimu. We could have had FUN!_]

{_Oh! What kind of fun?_} [_Oh, you know, since Rika never really wanted to, my dear Reimu and I were never able to experiment much._] {_Sounds like FUN~_}

Aya cuts the boy's chest slightly, making him bleed just a bit, while the boy manages to grunt "B-Blast Sign, Expansion that Soothes."

The tengu yelps when the large orange bullets materialize in front and behind her and explode all over her back, which siphon a bit of energy from her and transfers it to him with every explosion, restoring the cuts on Ail's stomach, leg and chest just as she lets him go.

She ends up flinching and covering her face when one of the larger bullets gets close to her face, yet it pops like a bubble when it touches her skin, making her growl as she uncovers her face again after realizing she was tricked.

She looks around for the boy, knowing he can't be too far away, but as hard as she tries to see or pick up a scent or a trail, she can't locate him.

Her face turns red, her eyes glow bright, she clenches her knife so hard she breaks the handle and bends the metal beneath, and after throwing the now-useless blade to the ground she looks up to the sky and shouts an obscene curse that echoes through all the shattered pieces of the alternate Gensokyo.

The echo of the tengu's voice reaches the Human Village, where Mugetsu and Gengetsu are currently flying over.

They both look toward the source of the voice, then the angel-winged demon exclaims "come on sis! He's over there!"

The blondes quickly fly away toward the Youkai Forest in hopes of getting to Ail, for whatever reason they may have this time.

* * *

That night, at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, as the freezing wintery winds blow gently outside the red walls, inside the basement, a semi-naked little blonde vampire roams the shadows of the halls in search of one particular prey.

As her punishment dictated, she's wearing a pair of thick pink bloomers and a pink sports bra while she lurks the basement corridor, making sure nobody spots her in such an embarrassing situation.

She hides behind a portrait of the mansion's outer landscape as two fairy maids; one blonde, the other blue-haired; pass by the corridor, giggling amongst themselves, and as they slowly make their way through, the little sister begins to mutter curses, cusses, and all manner of words that express her current emotional state.

Once the coast is clear, she jumps back on to the ground and grumbles "shitty poo-poo-head cat! Attacks me until I get punished... disappears when I'm hunting for him... I'll get him and _show_ that stupid-head Remi!"

As she turns the corner, she lets out a quick gasp when she spots a boy in a pair of camouflage pants and a black muscle shirt crawling on the carpeted floor.

She moves toward the bastard without making a single sound, bends her body and her knees when in range of a good pounce, hisses as her claws and fangs grow, then she jumps on the boy.

"WAAAAAHHH! Patchouli, my love, I'm sorry~!" laments the boy as he shields his face with his forearms just as Flandre raises her claws to attack.

She stops immediately after noticing she's on top of Leon, moans in disappointment, and exclaims "argh! You're not the cat; why are you wearing the cat boy's clothes!?"

The Kori boy slowly lowers his arms and inspects what he can of himself, then shrugs while looking at the blonde vampire and nervously says "I-I don't know. I was just looking for a way to get back to the library when I was suddenly surrounded in black stuff, and the next thing I know, you're on top of me."

"Okay, that sounded wrong for some reason," muses Flandre with a goofy smile and a pair of pink cheeks.

She suddenly feels a tug on both shoulders, and by the time she's placed on the floor on her feet again, she realizes Patchouli just removed her off Leon's person with ease; a big surprise for her and the present boy.

Afterward, the purple themed magician grabs Leon and squishes his face between her breasts; something he's enjoying far too much; then turns a glare at the vampire and hisses "he's mine!"

The girl takes the blissful boy along with her, leaving the exposed vampire alone in the corridor again.

Flandre sighs, rests her cheek on her right hand, and says to herself "I need to be more careful. It appears that stupid Azzhara knows I'm looking for him."

"Ah, that was love right there. To think we'll be sharing that soon, my lovely Flandre."

The vampire chokes when she tries to yelp, and twitches, turns her shaking head to the right, then quickly hisses and opens her arms as she launches herself toward the three-tailed nekomata.

He winds his body back, and in an instant she feels his head collide with hers with such force, her sight becomes blurry and her entire upper body seems to lose every ounce of strength.

Just as the weakness reaches her knees and she begins to fall, Azzhara turns into a cat and screeches as she zips all around the vampire, working his claws on her bloomers, then roars as he runs away from the girl.

Flandre is left on the floor with a red face and in a daze; her eyes spinning around fast while all she can do is moan in her attempt to speak, making it look as though she's smiling.

Sakuya walks over to the little vampire, sighs while shaking her head, her cheeks turn a bit pink when she notices the bloomers have been torn to shreds to look like common panties, and yet she elegantly picks the little sister up like a princess and walks her to the room while saying "if you don't capture that little pervert soon, Rika's going to get tired of fulfilling our requests."

* * *

The next winter morning, at the Hakurei Shrine, Rika coos with delight after handing Sakuya three more sets of clothes for Flandre, then bows her head to the mansion's chief maid.

"Sorry for all the trouble, Miss Rika. Are you sure you're alright about this? Really, we can pay you for all your hard work," says the silver haired girl with a look of embarrassment and gratitude.

The shrine's maid stands up, bows again, and with a bright and angelic smile on her face she says "it's alright, really! I don't mind at all. I love helping out; though I did make the fabric a bit stronger so it can last longer. Can't have the young lady running around in nothing now, can we?"

Sakuya chuckles "no, I guess not."

"Still," begins the angelic-winged girl, "so many outfits in such a short time. Miss Sakuya, is there a problem at the mansion? Maybe I can he-"

The elegant mansion maid raises a hand to stop the shrine maid from saying more, places the new set of clothes inside a paper bag, and with a subtle smile on her face she coldly says "thank you, but it's nothing we can't handle, Miss Rika. I assure you, should we need yours or Reimu's assistance, we will call for you."

With those words, Sakuya excuses herself, she and Rika bow their heads to each other, and then the former takes off to the sky with haste, betraying her calm-looking demeanor with an aura of anxiety.

Meanwhile, at the shrine's living room, Tenshi and Reimu share uncomfortable looks, and it appears as though the celestial is just about ready to break down.

She gulps in order to get ready to speak, then says "I've been thinking about our chat, Hakurei. I think you're right. But I don't know... it's been some time. What if they forgot who I am?"

"I told you what I thought about that, you annoying celestial," serenely answers Reimu. "They won't forget you just like that, so just go and talk to them if you feel you're ready."

The blue haired girl sighs, then there is a short pause between the two before the shrine maiden asks "tell me one thing though; why did you change your mind so suddenly? I thought you didn't even want to know about them."

Tenshi drops on the ground with a sigh and crosses her legs under her skirt, looks directly at the floor with a sad smile on her face while placing her hands on her knees, and softly says "that spirit girl. The way she looked at that ghost princess, and how she called her 'mama' like that. I dunno... it made me think of myself when I was little."

Reimu watches silently while the celestial sniffles and continues "I hadn't thought about that for so long, and all of a sudden my brain is flooded with those memories. But it's been so long; so long since I've spoken to my mother, or any of my family. I'm scared!"

Rika jumps out from hiding behind the sliding door, rushes toward her friend, and gives her a hug from behind, pressing her breasts against the celestial's back, just how she likes it.

Before the blushing Tenshi can ask what's going on, Rika breathes in loudly and says "Why didn't you tell me this was bothering you so much? You are my friend; I would have gladly helped you with the matter. After all, you helped me so much in the past."

The celestial places her hand on the angelic girl's forearm and whimpers the girl's name, but Rika quickly continues "you are a wonderful person Momoko, and your family loves you greatly, I just know it. Don't be afraid and go to them. I bet they are anxiously waiting for your return right now, wondering how you are, and where you have been all this time."

Tenshi shivers for a moment, but stops and sighs, lifts her head to show a bright and determined face to Reimu, turns around to hug the maid and happily exclaim "thank you, thank you, thank you! Rika-Hime, you're the wonderful one! You're always so nice and kind, and so good to me! And you always know what I like to hear."

The angelic maid flaps her wings while giggling along with her celestial friend, and then they both turn their heads to Reimu, who smiles weakly as she says "I said it before, and I'll say it again. You are one very lucky, annoying celestial, Hinanai."

The blue haired girl bows as her way of silently thanking the red and white, gives Rika a kiss on the cheek, and says "please forgive me if I'm away for too long, Rika-chan."

The brown-haired maid giggles, composes herself, helps herself and her friend back on to their feet, and says "take all the time you need. Miss Reimu and I will be here when you come back."

Tenshi nods to that statement, quickly makes her way to the door, slides them open and stares at the sky over the bald, snow-covered trees, and says to herself "alright, I can do this. Wait for me mom, I'm coming back home at last."

She turns her torso around and waves at the shrine girls, turns around before the girls wave back at her, then she jumps off the ground using more than the needed strength to take flight.

After she's gone, Rika turns to Reimu and asks "so, My Lady, are you ever going to tell me what you two talked about?"

Reimu opens her mouth to speak, but then she notices Marisa kneeling in front of the open doors, sobbing and crying twin waterfalls with a pair of glassy eyes, red cheeks, and an adorably wide frown; and then the maiden sighs.

The black and white sniffles loud and long, then cries "I'm not crying because that was all so sweet! I-I just got something in my eyes! Honestly!"

Before Reimu can speak, another interruption comes, this time in the form of Mima floating out of the room corridors while mumbling stuff about not being able to remember her dream, and a promise to Ail.

"Miss Mima!" exclaims the angelic maid. "You have finally woken up! How are you feeling?

The green haired woman moves her drowsy eyes all around until she finally spots Rika, then asks "awake? You mean I fell asleep? Me? ...For how long? I feel so dizzy! Did Ail come by?"

Reimu and Rika share a confused stare, both turn their heads to the spirit again, then the shrine maiden says "yes you. You just collapsed after Lykamei left, and you've been asleep for three days now. And what was that about promises to Ail?"

The evil spirit rubs her forehead while looking at the red and white girl and says "I'm not sure. I feel as though I have something important to do, but it's strange; I don't remember what."

The Hakurei Maiden suppresses her desire to comment about the spirit's age, and that's when Mima notices Marisa crying on the veranda and explodes in rage.

"Marisa! Who made you cry like this? Was it that good-for-nothing boyfriend of yours? Alright, that's it! I'm giving that brat the spanking of a lifetime! Don't wait for me! This conversation will be long and useless!"

She takes off before Rika or Reimu can tell her to calm down, and when she's out of earshot the shrine maid looks at the sobbing witch and asks "why didn't you stop her? Aren't you worried about your boyfriend?"

The blonde sniffles out loud, chokes as she clenches her teeth when she tries to speak, then suddenly cries "but I don't _have _a boyfriend! Waaaahhhhhh!"

Reimu and Rika share another confused look, then the shrine maiden says "I'll tell you about my chat with Tenshi after dinner, ok."

The maid nods once, then walks over to Marisa, set on wanting to help the crying witch inside.

Meanwhile, just outside the view from the open door, Suzaku has Aya tied upside down from a tall branch; displaying the tengu's cute white panties with the little red bow on the front and her gorgeous round bottom freely exposed; and says "_and if you try something like that again, I am delivering you to Lord Tenma personally, did I make myself clear?_"

"Yes, YES, crystal! Please let me cover up before Hatate comes!" cries the desperate curvy crow while Suika; who lounges on the branch next to them; takes swig from her ground and sighs contently.

There is a loud click, Aya cries out loud, then Suzaku bucks furiously and takes flight toward the source of the sound.

* * *

Back at the Youkai Forest in that endless autumn morning, Ail hides under a brown-leafed bush while Aya flies around the area.

He watches the crow girl with caution while thinking "_dammit all, she won't leave! She's dead-set on finding me. Mima, do you have any ideas?_"

The boy waits for a moment, but when there is no response he whispers "Mima, are you there? Hey [_put a sock in it kid, she's gone! Didn't you notice how quiet it got after that Aya babe dropped you?_] ...answer- oh... I see."

He hears taps and thuds behind himself, so Ail quickly dives and rolls, then points his finger toward the source of the sound and demands "move and I'll yell! Like a chicken!"

[_I'm shaking on my knees._]

"Quiet you! And I _KNOW_ you didn't touch Rika that time, [_Tch! DAMMIT! I wanted to mess with 'ya a little longer about that! How did you find out?_] ...so stop thinking about that!"

The figure in front of him sways a little as she tries to stand still, and after a sniffle, with a very weak tone of voice, she pleas "Ail, please... find it in your heart. Take this off of me, please. I need... misfortunes; I can't stand being this weak all the time."

Hina Kagiyama; whose hair is as aquamarine as her eyes, wears a dark-red dress that's brighter on the skirt, has the aquamarine symbol of misfortune sewn to her skirt's border, and adorns herself with large frilly red ribbons on the head and around her left arm; stands in front on the boy, all wobbly and unstable.

The weak goddess would normally tie her hair under her chin in a sort-of ponytail, but she appears to lack any care of how she looks, and even has her cleavage on full display.

[_Got to hell, Hina! You're the reason I was never able to achieve my goals in the first place!_]

And that's when the memory of NegaAil sucking all the misfortune energy from Hina, and placing a restricting charm on her bare chest comes to the good-but-dense boy's mind, and with that memory comes a terrible knowledge concerning a pair of young blonde goddesses as well.

Ail gulps at the sight of the goddess of misfortune before him, and after managing to breathe in enough, he is finally able to speak.

"Hina! Th-this is terrible! That gods damned NegaAil! P-please; let me help you!"

The green haired woman gasps weakly, though her overexcitement is evident on her face, and without questioning him even once, she starts untying the top of her shirt while excitedly saying "yes, please, take it off; hurry!"

Ail's face turns tomato red and is about to tell her to stop, but then he realizes his evil self probably put that there for his own sick pleasure.

Regardless, the boy looks away and waits, then a girl suddenly shouts "not so fast!"

Minoriko Aki reveals herself from behind Hina, and with a hateful scowl on her face she exclaims "don't believe this bastard! He'll probably strengthen that thing if you let him touch it! Or maybe he just wants to feel you up again!"

The young goddess has short blonde hair and red eyes, and wears a long-sleeved yellow blouse under an orangey apron and a black dress that reaches halfway up to her chest, and a red mop hat she adorns with fresh grapes.

She points an accusing finger at the boy, walks over to him, and demands "you are trying to trick her the same way you did to Shizuha; making her think you're good and crap; but I'm not letting you, Mister!"

Hina moans sadly as she slumps; displaying more of her cleavage; and then she weakly and sadly says "aww, come on. He's not that bad. He was just so full of misfortune last time, but he's fine now. Please let him take this off."

"No," barks the blonde before she starts poking Ail's plexus hard while saying "e-even if he _seems_ like he's all good now, he's probably just looking to have his way with you!"

Minoriko suddenly yelps when she feels something soft and warm covering her hand, and squeals with fright when she sees Ail holding said hand with both of his.

She calms down after looking deep into those golden eyes, then relaxes as the boy softly says "I am so sorry about Shizuha. Please understand my dark side, NegaAil, is NOT the same person you are looking at."

...

"Minoriko, I swear; I would do everything I could to bring Shizuha back to you, but he made the people forget about her, and undoing something like that is almost impossible, and right now I don't have the time to help. Please, understand what I am saying."

The blonde goddess stares at the boy in hopes of finding some darkness hidden in those eyes, but when she fails to find anything she can use, she sighs in defeat, pulls her hand away from the boy as she moves away, and softly says "fine, do whatever you want."

The green haired goddess quickly turns her frown into a smile again, she takes the top of her dress and pulls is apart, and reveals the charm stuck on her breasts.

The boy blushes, but he steels himself and relaxes when all she shows is just some skin, and is thankful his sick dark self didn't go too far with his perversion.

Ail reaches for the charm, carefully picks the edge of the charm on the left breast, looks at Hina in the eyes, then says "alright, I'm gonna yank this off you, so brace yourself."

The girl nods, closes her eyes tightly, then the dense one yanks the charm off as rapidly as he can, making a loud ripping noise and causing the poor goddess yelp out, curl up, and hold her chest in pain.

"Oh no, I'm so sorry," cries the boy as he watches Hina drop on her knees while wincing and holding her chest tight.

Ail yelps as a blur passes through him, and then he's gone in that instant, right before Minoriko's eyes; who still can't believe he actually freed the green haired girl without a threat, a condition, or making any lewd requests.

Hina Kagiyama sighs with relief after the stinging pain subsides, then lifts herself to her feet with her hands raised to the air, and begins to spin while cheering "YES! I'M FREE! I CAN RESUME MY LIFE! Thank you so much, Anilan! I knew you were-eh?"

The goddess looks everywhere for the boy, stops spinning to take better looks around, but when she fails to find him she looks at Minoriko and asks "did he melt?"

The young goddess shrugs while shaking her head, then the green haired goddess smiles and coos as loose misfortune starts gathering to her, and says "it's alright then. I'll thank him properly when he gets back."

* * *

Ail struggles with his captor as she carries him at breakneck speeds through the forest, and although the expected pain of being rammed against a tree hasn't come yet, he rather not wait for that to happen.

He breathes hard as he anxiously fights to free at least one arm, and brushes the body of his captor as he slowly pulls his right arm free from the mighty grip, but then he fails to feel the body belt Aya was wearing before, and takes a better look of his captor.

He gasps with surprise when he sees Hatate instead of Aya, holding him while flying through trees at such dangerous speeds, and with fright and anxiety still present in him he squeaks "Hatate?"

"Shut it you. Momiji, do it!"

Before he can question the tengu, she places her hand on his chest and smashes him to the ground, then flies away just as a white blur surrounded by strong gusts of winds ties his torso, arms and legs with rope that sinks into the very ground, using her skill and magic.

Once he's secure, the wolf tengu unsheathes her scimitar and points it at the boy's neck, making him flinch and shiver when that cold metal touches the underside of his chin, but then he groans out loud when he feels a solid kick to his ribs.

Hatate huffs as she takes her leg back and shouts "that's for the beating you gave me and for breaking my camera, you bastard!"

Ail would love nothing more than to rub the sore spot on his ribs, but all he can do is wince and wriggle around in his bindings.

He opens his mouth to protest, but the cold blade returns as Momiji threatens "shut it."

[_What a nice little bind you got yourself into, kid._]{_Huh? Wait, I'm here again? OH CRAP! I FORGOT TO GO SEE THE YAMA!_}

Tears of joy form under the dense one's eyes as he excitedly whispers "Mima, you're back. Please help me."

The entities inside him keep quiet as the two tengu muse over what to do with him now, wondering whether they should kill him, weaken him so that Aya can finish him off, or free him once Aya gets there and help her gain the upper hand.

{_Wait a minute! You've been wandering around this place for four long days? Ail; you have a job to do!_}

The boy whimpers when Momiji's sword cuts a bit of his skin as she unconsciously pushes the blade harder against him, and in his desperation he loudly says "Mima, you've been gone for thirty minutes only! Now please, help me!"

Both Hatate and Momiji turn their attention to the boy; the wolf tengu removing her sword from his chin; and both stare at him curiously.

{_Thirty minutes? But I woke up three days after I collapsed, then I went and taught Marisa's boyfriend a le-oh wait, Marisa doesn't have a boyfriend. Heheh; whoopsies!_}

[_HAHAHAHAHA! Man, Mima, you are the best! Say, what did you do to him?_]

While the two beings in Ail's head speak joyfully of the wrongful punishment brought down on an innocent, Hatate stares at the teary-eyed boy's golden eyes and says "wait a minute. There's something different about you."

[_Want to kill that bitch._]{_Shut up and listen! So then, after stuffing the crumbs in his mouth, I..._}

The two entities continue talking while Momiji kneels closer to Ail; stabbing her sword on the ground for support; closes her eyes and sniffs over his body, then opens her eye with surprise and says "you're right. It's like he's different person."

{_Aww, look at that. They are already noticing the differences._}[_Oh la-dee-da! This is just temporary shit! Once I recover my strength I'll take my body back and put these Tengu back in their place! And what did you do to the guy with that broomstick?_]

Hatate and Momiji kneel by the boy's side while staring carefully at him, and then the crow girl says "like, even his eyes look different. There's none of that dark stuff that was there before."

{_Oh, so you really think you're all that? You've got some serious problems, boy._}[_Hey, hey, hey, hey; it's not me who has the problems, it's THEM! They're the ones that pretended to be Reimu's friends!_]{_It's not their faults you..._}[_And then they all just..._]

The wolf tengu places her hand on his forehead and closes her eyes, then quickly opens them again and says "Hatate, I think we made a mistake. This isn't the same Ail. He even _feels_ like a different being altogether!"

The dense once smiles after hearing the girls' conclusion, and then softly says "Momiji, Hatate, you angels! I'm so glad you noticed. Now please cut my head off. Mima and NegaAil just won't shut up."

{[**_Mind your own business, Ail!_**]}

The white wolf quickly cuts away the ropes; causing them to disappear once severed; then the crow tengu easily lifts the boy up and dusts his back while saying "I'm sorry Ail, but I still find this a little hard to believe! You've been this major perverted, abusive, bastard of a monster for so long; and now it's like you've reset yourself or something!"

The boy smiles, though the distress in his eyes betray his calmness, then he softly says "not exactly. You see, NegaAil, that vile bastard you know, is still inside of me. Right now he's so weak, he can only talk to me for short periods of time, but he's still a threat, and he wants to kill you all."

Momiji quickly aims her sword at the boy's head and growls "then let's be rid of him once and for all. Sorry Ail, I know you're the nice one, but if that monster's still there, then you must sacrifice your-"

The boy remains standing in place with his eyes clenched shut, trembling while he waits for that inevitable death, but when the honorable tengu sees this, she sighs and lowers her weapon while saying "I can't do it, no matter how badly I want to. It's too pitiable"

Ail gasps and places a wide barrier above himself and the girls, blocking very sharp-looking black feathers from harming them, but fails to notices the grenade that rolls under their feet.

All three are blown away from each other, then Aya angrily declares "you two stay away from him, unless you want me to kill you too! He's _MY_ target and anyone getting in my way..."

She takes the three knives from her body belt with one hand, crosses them in front of her face, and with a cold and dark tone of voice she finishes "will get the same treatment as him."

* * *

That night, at the Hakurei Shrine, while Suzaku pecks the jiggly butts of the upside-down Aya and Hatate; the latter wearing white teddy bears panties; Reimu and Rika clean the table while Marisa sleeps contently inside the guest's futon.

Since everyone else is either busy or unavailable, the girl in red and white thinks it's the best time to tell Rika about the chat with Tenshi, so she begins "so then, now that the celestial spilled the secret herself, I should feel no remorse in telling you of our chat."

The maid stops gathering dishes and looks straight at her mistress with interest, then nods firmly after she kneels behind the table.

Reimu smiles after sitting at the other side of the table, softly breathes in, then looks straight at her maid as she remembers that morning:

**FLASHBACK**

Right after their little group hug with Rika and her super-soft wings, Reimu and Tenshi enter the shrine's living room while everyone else spread to do chores, hunt for news, or whatever else they may want to do.

The celestial feels annoyed when she notices the shrine maiden staring at her with those stiff and serene eyes, but before she has the chance to bark angrily, the black haired girl says "Tenshi, I wish to have a talk with you."

"I told you, I'm not leaving yet. Besides, I've been helping Rik-"

Reimu lifts a hand to quiet the celestial down, shakes her head, and calmly says "please listen; this is very important. It's about Rika and you."

The shrine maiden pauses for a moment, her eyes seem to drift along with her mind as she looks toward the blue haired girl, who barks "so? What about Rika and me?" and helps bring the shrine maiden back from her mind.

After a quick apology, the black haired girl continues "well, the thing is, Tenshi, like you've said before, you and Rika have been friends since a very long time, long before I was even born, and will probably be together for an ever longer time; longer than I'll be able to witness."

The celestial raises an eyebrow with suspicion, but before she can speak up, Reimu continues "I am a human, and before long I'll become a burden to Rika, so I ask you to please help her as much as you can, keep her by your side in her time of need, help her stay strong after I am gone. Please, take good care of Rika."

Tenshi is left in shock; though she won't show it. She places her hand on her chest and breathes in deep, and after calming down she says "you got some nerve telling me all of this so suddenly, Haku-Reimu. Seeing as you are correct, I'll do as you have requested, but I must admit you surprised me there. I was expecting a threat, or another request to leave."

Reimu giggles and ends up coughing lightly, then quickly replies "oh, Rika is mine for as long as I live, Hinanai; but..."

Her face falls to the floor as her lips straighten out, and then continues "in all seriousness Tenshi, I am being honest. Rika is half youkai, while I am just a human. She's very attached to me, so the day I am gone, I want you to step in; to be there for her at all times."

There is another long pause between the two girls where all they do is stare at each other, as if studying one another carefully, then out of the blue, both begin to smile at each other, albeit weakly.

Reimu suddenly doubles over and giggles as though being tickled, causing Tenshi to scowl and ask "what's so funny? A-are you making fun of me, human? You better quit it!"

The shrine maiden quickly shakes her head as she giggles a few no's, then says "it's just that, despite my better judgment, I feel a little envy towards you, Tenshi. You are one very lucky and annoying celestial, Hinanai."

"And why is that?" angrily asks the blue haired girl with a turn of the head and a cute pout while crossing her arms under her chest.

Reimu's face completely changes to that of a wounded spirit begging for relief, and yet she manages to smile while saying "you have Rika, you mother, father, and if I'm not mistaken, you have sisters too, am I right? I am alone; although I am glad to have Rika with me. But, I don't have a family like you do. I know I shouldn't feel this way, but I do."

Tenshi's face turns so red, it's making Remilia's red tea look pink in comparison.

She mumbles and moans what should be words of embarrassment, then sighs in defeat and sadly says "you shouldn't feel even the slightest bit of envy towards me, Reimu. I haven't spoken to any of them in ages; and I don't even want to _know_ about them either. Besides, I highly doubt they even know I'm still alive."

"_Ah, so she DOES have sisters,_" thinks the shrine maiden while looking serenely at the girl before her.

She then stands up, walks over to the blue haired girl, slaps her across the face once; though not as hard as the celestial expected; and sternly says "count your blessings, Tenshi Hinanai! Family is bound by ties stronger than anything! They may be mad at you, they may spit hurtful things at you, but they would _never_ forget you or stop loving you!"

Tenshi rubs her cheek; even though there's really no reason for that; scowls at the shrine maiden, and angrily says "you didn't have to hit me! And why do you hate me so much? You just said something nice, and then suddenly slap me! If you want me gone, think a- ...Hey, what's wrong?"

Tenshi's face turns to worry when she notices Reimu's face looks a little paler, and her eyes look glassy and tired.

The shrine maiden shakes her head and waves her hand at the girl, then says "forget about me and listen. I can't and won't force you to do anything you don't want to do. Unlike what you think, I don't hate you; you just annoy me a lot. And about your family, please think about it a little more."

The red and white stares into the celestial's eyes a little longer, rubs her head under her hat as a mother would, then takes off to the shrine's temple, wobbling as she makes her way to the sacred room.

Before she's gone, the confused celestial says "wait, please, don't tell Rika about this conversation; e-especially the part about my family."

Reimu turns her neck to show the girl the wondering in her eye, and then the blue haired girl adds "it's not that I don't trust her, it's just that I don't want her to worry about me. She's been through so much shit, Reimu. I don't want her going through more; especially because of me."

The shrine maiden nods once, then softly says "be at ease. My lips are sealed; you lucky celestial."

With those words, the black haired girl finally leaves the room, leaving the celestial girl alone with her thoughts.

Tenshi stays in the room with her hat tilted just slightly back, a confused face, and tears welling up under her eyes.

She closes her eyes and shakes her head, whispers to herself "you don't know anything, Reimu. Those celestials are more stubborn than I am," and then she stands up and walks over to the room corridor, muttering "stupid human girl will need some rest soon."

**END FLASHBACK**

Back at the present, Rika stares at her mistress with pained eyes, then quickly says "My Lady, your lifespan won't be that short, I just know it! You and I will spend many years together, along with Miss Marisa and Tenshi, and all our friends!"

Reimu closes her eyes as she sighs, opens them halfway, and with a serene smile on her face she says "perhaps you're right. No, I hope you're right. Before, I was secretly eager for this life of mine to end, but now..."

The shrine maiden feels Rika's warm embrace, so she lets out another sigh, this one of relief, then the angelic maid gently says "thank you for thinking so much about me and my well being, Miss Reimu. You don't know how much that means to me. And my lady, please remember that you _are_ like family to me. You are so very special to me, so please consider yourself as lucky as me and Tenshi."

The Hakurei Maiden returns the embrace with her free arm, and like all good things in this world, the eventually embrace ends.

The angelic maid flaps her wings as she giggles happily, then looks confused at her mistress, and asks "um, say, since when did you know that I am a half youkai?"

A very disturbing smile creeps on Reimu's face as she stares so deceivingly happily at her maid, making Rika nervous and uncomfortable.

Just as the adorable maid is going to ask what's the matter, the shrine maiden jumps on her maid, wrestles her for a moment, and is now rubbing her wings while sitting on her back.

As she does this, she playfully says "why Rika Onkamikami, you incorrigible maid, how dare you question your mistress' intelligence?"

The flushed maid moans and sighs because of the attention her wings are getting, and through those moans she manages to say "p-please... forgive me... my lady. Uwoooo~ that feels so nice~"

Reimu sighs happily as she rubs those silky-soft wings, then shakes her head and playfully says "nope. I think you deserve a little more punishment young lady. Now you let your _lucky_ big sister play with these wings."

* * *

Back at the eternal-morning Youkai Mountain, the autumn leaves fly everywhere as Aya shoots all manner of bullets, throws grenades, and casts powerful wind spells in hopes of catching Ail, Hatate and Momiji off their guards.

"Leave! She's after me and is only getting madder with you two here!" shouts Ail at the top of his lungs, worried for the wolf tengu and the crow tengu running alongside him.

Momiji clicks her tongue and angrily says "don't underestimate me! It will take more than what she's got to take me out!"

Hatate scoffs and says "I'm a lot stronger than you think, you little brat. Your other self just, like, caught me off my guard last time!"

All three scream when three grenades suddenly explode close enough to send them al flying forward by force.

Momiji grabs the ground and pushes herself upright, sliding just a bit when she lands on her feet; Hatate flips like an acrobat and sticks her landing, though with a bit of trouble; Ail falls flat on his stomach on the ground, but takes advantage of the rebound and pushes himself with his hands, flipping in the air once and landing on his feet.

Aya swoops down after Ail with two knives on her right hand and the third on the left, and then tries to cross-cut him just as the boy places a thin blue barrier that blocks the blades; he then pushes her back up to the sky with an energetic violet barrier that rises from the ground.

Once safe, the white wolf unsheathes her sword and declares "she's completely out of control! We need to take her out the hard way!"

"No!" shouts the concerned boy. "Please, let me handle her! It's me she's aiming to kill after all. You two, please do me a favor. Tell everyone at the village what you have learned! Tell them of NegaAil, of me, and make sure to tell them not to lower their guard when I'm around."

Afterward, he gestures them to get closer and whispers some more, getting a quick nod from both.

The twin tailed crow tengu takes a photo of him, even though she has her hands ready to shoot danmaku, and says "sure thing. It's not like we trust you completely, but, like, you've proven worthy of _some_ trust so far."

"Then why did you free me so easily?" quietly mumbles the boy to himself in his disbelief. {_Don't question stupidity, dear._}

Momiji points her scimitar at him and adds "we'll tell them everything you asked, but keep in mind you are still a threat as you are, and if you can't control that evil self of yours, we _will_ take you both down, you understand?"

Ail nods with steeled determination present in his eyes, when all of a sudden Aya shouts "HE'S MY KILL!" and tackles the boy so fast, even Hatate loses sight of them in an instant.

Ail is not certain how, but Aya drags him all the way to the outskirts of the Human Village, where a raging thunderstorm drowns the land while in the darkness of night.

Although it's so dark, they both can see well enough to continue the fight, even though the dense boy obviously doesn't want to.

He grabs hold of her right wing and reaches for the tainted charms on the left side of her back, but the girl; thinking he's trying to rip the other wing off; panics and shrieks, and then she begins to spin around as fast as she can.

The boy is flicked right off her and falls on the mud, and although he feels wet, his clothes and skin are dry, unlike Aya.

He scrambles to get on his feet and rushes away just in time to escape a flurry of feathers sharp enough to stick on the mud like knives, then he shoots a yellow orb of light that illuminates the area as though it was a dim sun.

{_Nice move Ail! Now how can you use this to your advantage?_}

The boy hops right and rolls to avoid more feathers and dark-green shard bullets, and then says "I don't know, but at least I can see her movements! Mima, do you think there is any way I could stop her without harming her too badly? I want to remove that restrain on her back while she's conscious."

"Yeah, keep talking to yourself, Anilan! Make sure you _PRAY_ as well!" shouts the furious tengu as she takes her knives and prepares two between her fingers again.

{_You'll need something exceptionally strong to stop her movements. Other than that small tip, I really don't know what else to suggest. Well... you could shoot back, but then you could hit her too hard, and then this whole plan will backfire._}

Ail growls inward, then suddenly realizes something while dodging a rather slow tackle from the tengu, and asks "hey, where's that bastard?"

{_I tired him out, but he'll be back eventually, so don't you worry._}

The boy hums in surprise, then says "oh, hey... where did Aya go?"

When he looks up to the thundering sky, he sees Mugetsu and Gengetsu fighting with Aya in the sky, and it is painfully obvious that despite the two being so powerful, they weren't ready to fight such a relentless enemy.

Right after hitting Gengetsu on the head with a solid kick, Aya quickly shoots her danmaku from the palm of her hand straight onto Mugetsu's face to the right.

While the younger dream demon begins to fall, the raging tengu grabs the elder sister by the wings and swings her like a club against the pretend-maid, sending them both down at the same time as lightning strikes behind them.

She follows her attack with a relentless danmaku barrage after declaring "Wind God, Storm Day!" and the two dream demons only have the chance to scream while the bullets blast them into a freshly made crater.

"What the-!" The boy can't believe his eyes, but ignores his own shock in order to rush to the aid of the blondes while exclaiming "she's fighting like some possessed demon! Mima, how the hell am I still in one piece!?"

Ail jumps into the large crater, picks up the two girls by the waists before the raging rain water fills the hole, and places barriers above himself and the girls while rushing to get somewhere safe.

{_You've been using your head; that's why. Keep using it and restrain her quickly, or she'll really take that cute thinking head of yours back home with her._}

After making sure the dream demons are safely hidden under the nearby bushes, Ail snorts angrily and rushes to the sky, getting the insane tengu's full attention after he exposes himself.

"They didn't deserve that, Aya! You are after _me_, so keep your sights and attacks on your real target!"

The girl's eyes glow as the artificial sun slowly dims, then says "anyone who gets between me and you will be treated like _you_! And don't start acting like you suddenly care about others, because I won't fall for that act!"

She swings her fan and sends a gust that turns the raindrops into stinging needles, but those are no match for Ail's barriers.

The boy scowls furiously at the girl; mostly angry at himself because someone got hurt while trying to help him; summons a staff of light, twirls it once, then points it at the raging tengu after taking a fighting stance.

Aya wastes no time and rushes to him with a knife on her left hand, and her fan on her right.

* * *

Ail lifts his left hand and places another barrier in front of himself, then flies away as Aya breaks through it with sheer brute force while roaring "I'll destroy you Ail! I'll make you my trophy!"

"You shouldn't have hurt those girls," replies the boy as he swings his staff upward and forces the girl to twirl left, then both shoot danmaku bullets at each other at point-blank range, causing serious burns to each other's hands and clothes before they zip away from one another.

The dense boy quickly takes a spell card from his pocket and declares "Earth Sign, Earth Spirit Heartbeat!" and soon after he is surrounded by green and white shard bullets that shape a giant heart that beats at the pace of his own anxious heart, while Aya gets trapped between two sets of laser beams that keep her from moving at her leisure.

Regardless of being trapped, she takes a spell card on her fan hand and declares "tch! I'm not a simple weakling! Crow Sign, _Dark_ Daymare!"

The blue orbs Ail was shooting to home in at Aya are now aimed at the insane flock of crows covering the already dark sky.

The birds move like blurs when they swoop in to attack the boy, but by keeping his shard bullets from showering on the tengu, and using the homing blue orbs against those birds, Anilan is able to stop and repel them.

Both spell cards time out at the same time, the boy and the girl glare at each other, ignoring the rainwater getting into their eyes, and as another bolt of lightning strikes they both rush at each other again.

Ail swings his weapon of light when Aya swings her knife and her fan. He cuts her whirlwind and she cuts his arm, making him flinch and shoot a focused orb at her torso out of reflex, surprising her with the blast and shouting "dammit Aya, I wanted to help you, but it looks like I need to _make_ you listen!"

Before she fully recovers from the surprise, he strikes her on the side with his energy staff, then shoots light blue danmaku arrowheads at her relentlessly, trying to force her back to the ground.

When they are halfway down, the tengu roars out loud and pushes herself toward the boy with all her might while shouting "you lecherous _LIAR_! You just want to humiliate me some more!"

She spins in the air and strikes him on the ribs with her head, making him feel as though she's drilling right through him, and causes him to lose all focus and his weapon of light, and when she stops her attack, all she has to do is punch him lightly across the face and watch him fall to the mud on his back.

{_Ail! Come on, she didn't hit you that hard! Wake up!_}

Aya lands just a few steps away from the boy and darkly says "well, this was actually easier than I thought."

She walks over to him {_Ail! Ail, wake up! Dammit, she's going to kill you, you idiot!_} taps her foot on his ribs and watches as his head flops left, then smiles and says "no matter. I got what I wanted. Now, time to end this for good."

She kneels next to him, grabs him by his hair and places her knife on his neck, and with a dark smile on her face she sinisterly says "now those idiots won't have any more reason to continue those disgusting, humiliating rumors in their papers."

Lightning strikes again, blinding the girl for a fraction of a second, and now Ail is holding her wrist and pushes the knife away from himself while thick roots snake their way around the girl's legs, torso and forearms.

"Wait, wha-? What the hell?" exclaims the black-haired girl while flapping her wing hard in her attempt to escape, but she can't even budge an inch.

"No! NOOOOOO! This is not fair! I had you! Your life was mine!"

She starts to cry in her anxious despair and roars like a savage while attempting to break free of her binds, all while the boy slowly gets on his knees and watches her with pity.

{_Ail, dammit, don't scare me like that! Answer me with a thought next time, you idiot!_}

He sighs with relief and relaxes himself, then softly says "I'm sorry Miss Mima, but I wasn't sure what I was doing. I'll let you in on my plan next time."

Aya continues to grunt as she struggles to break free while looking at Ail with a thirst for his blood, and as if holding back her desire to cry, she says "I had you. I had you right there and you cheated! I hate you! I hate you so much!"

This causes him to sigh again and sadly says "oh Miss Aya. What has that monster side of me done to you?"

* * *

Later, after a long walk, Ail, Mugetsu and Gengetsu arrive to the tall tree where Ail woke up next to earlier that day, and Aya is promptly dragged along by the same roots and vines that the boy used to trap her with, which are crawling through the ground with ease.

She lets her head hang while her tears of despair and hatred continue to flow down her cheek, again causing the boy to sigh sadly when he looks at her with pity.

He looks at the dream demons to distract himself from the pain of that sight, and asks "again, why are you two looking for me?"

Mugetsu steps up with an apologetic face, bows quickly, and with a sad tone she says "in our attempt to help you, we ended up screwing things up for you a great deal more, so we wanted to apologize."

Gengetsu smacks the back of her sister's head with her wing while sighing loudly, then says "what little sister wants to say is, we wanted to help you get out of here, but we screwed up when we damaged this world's heart, so we are here to offer our assistance as a way of repaying this second debt we owe you now."

"Second debt?" asks the boy while raising an eyebrow. "And where is Kana? I thought she was with you."

The maid girl blushes and gulps, then mutters "my goodness he's so cute when he's stupid."

The winged demon sighs anxiously while rubbing her forehead, and says "we already told you we owe you for helping us out of the dream world. Now we owe you again for trapping you in **_this_** dream world. See the connection now?"

With his eyebrow still raised, he asks "and Kana?"

"We don't know where she is!" cries the little sister in maid's uniform.

She jumps on the boy and rubs her cheek against his while holding him tight and crying "she just took off on her own after we woke up, saying stuff about idiots and pudding!"

"I think it was midgets and exits," muses the elder sister while holding her chin.

Ail pushes Mugetsu away and exclaims "alright, alright, jeez, calm down!" then he adjusts his shirt, which appears the girl tried to pull off, and more calmly says "if you really want to help me, do me a huge favor."

The two blondes stand in attention in front of the weeping tengu, then the boy smiles and says "please, go around _this_ Gensokyo and tell everyone about me. Make sure you tell them I am good, and that I am holding my evil self back by suppressing him inside of myself. Maybe that way someone is bound to join my side. If you succeed, you will have helped me escape this world, understand?"

He places his hands on the girls' shoulder, and adds "and there's one more thing."

He whispers into their ears, making the older sister blush, and the younger flush and giggle, and when he's done, he pulls his head away and says "succeed and you will have paid your debt to me in full. And if you see Kana, tell her to help too, even though it's unlikely she will."

The blonde sisters grin and salute the boy, say "**you can count on us!**" then take off to the sky and disappear after a few seconds as though it has swallowed them whole.

Afterwards, Ail approaches the trapped tengu, considers if placing a supporting hand on her could help the situation, but after wisely discarding the though he asks "you calm down yet?"

Aya responds by raising her head and showing him a most despicable and hateful glare, and a snarl packed with enough negative energy to create a legion of evil spirits.

Regardless of this, Ail bends his knees close to her, and says "Aya, I know what my dark self did to you is unforgivable, but you are lowering yourself to his level by attacking me with hatred and disregarding the health and life of others just to reach our goal."

He stands up and walks around her while saying "in short, [_Talk all you want, kid; she's not coming back. Kill her now while you have the chance._]{_Shut up!_} ...your thirst for revenge has turned _YOU_ into NegaAil himself."

"You're just trying to confuse me!" barks the raging girl, drooling as she roars and snarls while trying to break free. "You're just trying to get me to lower my guard, but that won't work, Anilan!"

"I tried talking to you before, and you **_answer by defiling me!_** Eat shit and die Inmodo! I'll _never_ fall for your tricks or that silver tongue of yours; not again! I will kill you, and all those rumors about me and you will die as your severed heard _ROTS_ in my porch!"

{_Wow, this girl is awesome! She has some pretty neat ideas there. Let me write them dow-oh that's right, I don't have hands right now..._}

Ignoring the evil spirit's comments, Ail bends his knees again and commands the vines to force Aya to face him so that she can look straight into his eyes.

As she does, her snarling breaths subside as she slowly calms down. Noticing this, the boy looks back with sadness in his golden eyes as he says "you should listen to yourself. You are saying the exact same words that monster inside me would say. He would use his pain to block out reason, and thus, justify the means; despicable as they may be; for the end."

Her eyes suddenly lose that murderous glow while the boy risks placing his hand on her head, and as he expected by him, she appears to be lost in her thoughts.

Regardless, he chuckles and says "where's that carefree reporter that loved peace above everything else? You should drop the weapons and take your camera again. You were so cool and collected before, and no matter what, you never raised your hand in hatred."

The girl's eyes turn a bit dull as she slowly begins to remember her old self, and while she does that, Ail stands up and walks behind her.

When Aya feels his hand near her right wing, she starts to whimper and shiver, but relaxes when the boy himself softly says "relax. I'm just returning what was taken from you."

Two seconds after he says that, the tengu feels when the boy pulls what feels like dead skin from her back, and then he places his warming hands on that sore spot, rubs it once, and a small black wing sprouts once more.

The feathers feel a bit rough and seem weak, but she doesn't care about that fact; she's just overjoyed to feel and see that wing growing again.

While she's gasping with excitement over her restored wing, Ail walks over to the tree, spins in place and kicks it hard, causing the brown and golden leaves to fall, and along with them falls the tengu's weathered camera.

He easily catches the device, promptly walks over to the girl, and places it in front of her, then backs away while saying "Shizuha... she would have loved doing that. I hope she'll get to enjoy it again."

He smiles at the tengu girl when she glances up, and says "I am leaving now. Please think carefully about what I just said to you, Aya. Also, please don't follow me again. I don't want to fight you. I don't want to fight anyone. It's not my nature, regardless of how it seems."

He turns around and walks away, and right after he's out of sight, the roots and vines around Aya slowly uncoil and return under the earth.

The girl remains where she is, kneeling and supporting herself with her hands while staring at her camera, paying no attention to the small group of wolf tengu walking to her from the left side of the forest.

Meanwhile, Ail rests his head on his linked hands behind himself while looking at the sky, wondering where to go next.

{_Tell me something Ail. I know you have the power of energy manipulation, but you controlled those vines as though you were Yuka Kazami herself. How did you do that?_}

The dense boy closes his eyes and smiles, and then says "it was a gift from this world's Yuka. She knew I would need them, even though I wanted to return them so badly. I guess she was right; though I still would like for her to be alive again."

Satisfied with his answer, the boy smiles and sighs with relief, then he suddenly stops and turns around with his eyes wide open, and looks around as though terrified of something.

{_Ail, what's wrong?_}

"Aaaaaaiiilllll~" calls a very familiar voice from the distance.

The boy gasps as a pair of silhouettes appear on the road and walk closer to him, and as though seemingly angry, he asks "wh-what the heck are you two doing here!?"

* * *

That late winter afternoon, at the Bamboo Forest of the Lost, rabbits, foxes, bugs, fairies and humans scramble to put out the remaining fires that threaten to level the entire forest.

In the center of the whole commotion are Kaguya and Mokou, kneeling on the ground and restrained by sealing arrows on the head, while Kyo and Keine; all four full of soot and burn marks; scowl at the girls while looking down at them.

"So let me get this straight..." begins the history teacher after a disappointed sigh towards Kaguya. "You thought it would be cool to set the forest on fire... because one of Mokou's fans told you she and fire were cool? And you wanted to prove it _wasn't_?"

Kyo places his face closer to Mokou's, and in a dangerously low tone asks "and you went and kicked the princess into the fire she stared, _THEN_ made it more intense, just because one of Kaguya's fans told you she was hot?"

Both immortals point at each other and each speaks as though it was all the other's fault.

"QUI**ET**!" barks Eirin, who stands with her bow and arrow aimed at both immortals, which immediately quiet down like good little girls.

Keine paces around the immortals with her hands behind her back, and making that official stern look only a teacher of great experience knows how to use effectively, she stops between the two girls and stands up straight.

She waits for them to raise their heads, and then she says "no more fan clubs for either of you until you clean up this mess and restore the forest! **Did I make myself clear!?**"

The girls nod sadly, then Kyo quickly adds "hey, I have a _better_ idea. Why not disband their stupid little fan clubs until they _BOTH_ mature a bit more, eh?"

Youkai, fairies and humans with deadly looks, torches, pitch forks, chains, knives, swords and hammers gather around the small meeting.

Kyo, Keine and Eirin sweat and shiver lightly, their eyes hide under the shade of their hairs, and out of all the people there, the tiniest fairy, which wears a green dress and has brown coiled hair and green eyes threateningly asks "what was that, big man?"

She taps her large hammer on her hand in a steady rhythm while she waits for the answer.

Kyo chuckles lightly, and then hesitantly says "uhh... it was a joke!"

"Yeah, just a joke people," quickly adds Keine.

Eirin smiles, chuckles softly, then says "that's right; so why don't you all just take a break, let these two cool down and clean this mess, and come back in a few days, hmm?"

The little fairy stares at the Lunarian, studies her carefully, then shrugs casually and says "okay, we can do that."

The multitude mumbles amongst themselves as they disperse and go their separate ways, while the trio sigh with relief as they wipe the sweat off their foreheads.

Kaguya shifts her legs, opens her right eye to look scornfully at her rival, and whispers "this stupidity is all your fault."

A red pulsating vein appears on Mokou's forehead, yet all she does is sigh before saying "at least I'm not the one wearing see-through panties, your perverted highness."

Kaguya gasps, places her hands over her skirt, and growls while her face turns as red as a tomato.

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Teams Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Lykamei, Azzhara, Leon and Kyo were created by Willie G.R.

Ail's spell cards - "Darkness, Dance of the Black Lights" (Yami, Odoru no Hikari Koro); "Blast Sign, Expansion that Soothes"; and "Earth Sign, Earth Spirit Heartbeat", were created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami and Suzaku were created by Snapshot 2010

SEP 16 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Hmm... Finally didn't take THAT long for this next chapter. I would have posted it 3 days sooner, but real life, Kingdom Hearts 3D, and New Super Mario Bros 2 have distracted me.**

**So yeah, Aya is very vile here, but things didn't screw up as bad this time. Does this mean things are finally looking up? And what about Aya? Will she have a change of heart, or will she be that epic mistake Ail has made in this story? And who the heck are those two people heading towards Ail now? Did Momiji and Hatate come back? Did Gengetsu and Mugetsu screw up already? And why am I asking YOU all of this? WHO ARE YOU PEOPLE!?**

**LOL, silliness aside, hope you are enjoying this story, and hope you'll stick around for more. Take care, and see you on the next chapter. Oh, and please be nice to me and feed me a review or two.**

* * *

Tenshi: What? That's it? What about me and my family?

Me: Whoa there Miss Tenshi, don't blow a gasket now. This chapter is already long enough, plus, the events with your family... I kinda wish to make it into its own spin-off, and if it's good enough, I'd like to make it into a continuing series.

Tenshi: *Her eyes become stars* Reaaaaallyyyy~ I'm going to be the star of my very own spin off!? THAT'S GREAT! *Glomps Willie and kisses his cheeks* Thank you, thank you, thank you so much!

Me: *Gently pushes her away without wanting to* Whoa there little lady. Your sexy mom will be the star of the spin-off, not you.

Tenshi: *Lifts the sword of Hisou above her head* WILLIE, YOU BASTARD, PERVERT, PANTY-HUNTER!

Me: Heheh, I was only jok-*Smashed on the head with her fist instead of sword*

Minutes later

Satori: *Bending her knees to Willie's left* So you made another girl mad? Tsk, tsk Willie. At this rate, you'll never find yourself a girlfriend.

Me: Ugh. Quiet you. And just so you know, I'm about to beat KH3D, even though you wasted my Megalixir.

Satori: *Smiling* And that helps you get a girlfriend how?

Me: *Sniffle* Leave me alone!"

Satori: 2 Willie: 0


	9. Chapter 9

Legend: [_i_] = a sudden thought between the dialogue, or Ail/NegaAil talking to the one in control of Ail's body.

{_i_} = Mima speaking to Ail/NegaAil in his mind.

Jan 9 2013 - This chapter had to be almost fully re-edited, and quite a few parts re-written. Thankfully, I feel the story is flowing a little smoother. And I feel it's pointless to ask, but can someone feed me a review or something on any inconsistencies or odd errors? I feel I've ironed out MOST, but not all. Maybe it's just my head.

* * *

Ail sits against a tree with his hands resting on his lap while enjoying the fresh shade on that eternal autumn morning.

He takes a long and deep breath and exhales it all as a very long sigh, then asks "so, no matter what I say, you two will stay here with me? Do you realize who I am? Do you understand how dangerous it is to be seen with me?"

"I don't care," replies a girl. "We are seeing you through this Ail, and we won't leave until the job is done."

The dense one chuckles softly, raises his right knee and holds his leg tightly against his chest, then says "you are definitely Reimu Hakurei. I am sure the one outside this world would say the same thing."

Reimu sits on the other side of the tree and is holding her left leg against her chest as she giggles softly, then says "she better or I'll go there and kick her on the butt."

Rika, who sits on the southern side of the tree, chuckles along her mistress, then asks "so, Mister Anilan, do you have a specific goal, or perhaps you're just sending random girls to spread rumors about yourself and lost goddesses for your amusement?"

The black haired girl reprimands her servant, though the dense one merely chuckles and replies "yes, I do have a goal in mind."

There is a short pause as he thinks carefully on his choice on words, and then he continues "I want to meet with the one that supposedly started this whole mess with you, Reimu. Maybe she holds the answer I seek."

Reimu turns over and crawls to the boy's side, and with genuine worry she says "please, don't go there! She swore she would never forgive you and she's stubborn enough to keep her word; even if you can prove to her you are another Ail."

He tries to answer, but then he turns his head to Rika, who has crawled to him on the other side and adds "you are being reckless! They will tear you apart in seconds! You'll just end up making Miss Reimu cry again!"

"RIKA!" reprimands Reimu, causing the maid to look down to the ground and back off.

Ail sighs, looks at the sulking maid, then says "I'm afraid I am short on options, and although the kappa may be easier to convince, my heart tells me Remilia may be the key to all of this."

He stands up, dusts his pans, looks toward the direction of the Misty Lake, and says "I'm sorry Rika-sis, but I have to do this; for my sake, and the sake of this world you live in. Heh, that charisma vampire is my one hope of getting out of here, and this world's hope for one less villainous scum like NegaAil, so I'm not turning back."

"Don't call him scum!" demands Reimu, looking just about ready to strike with her gohei.

Ail stands up and moves to the road, looks back at the ex-shrine maiden, then just bows his head and moves on down the road, leaving the two girls behind.

A cool breeze starts blowing from the east and Reimu sighs while letting her hair dance along with it while asking "Rika, how do you feel about all of this?"

The maid quickly stands up with her wings stretched out with stress and anxiously says "My Lady, please, let's go back! Just being around him gives me a bad feeling. I worry for your safety!"

"But Rika, we have talked about this," coldly says the ex-shrine maiden. "So, we follow him and help him as best as we can, and if things go as I think they will, you will go _there_ and stay _there_. Isn't that what we agreed on before heading out?"

The winged girl sighs anxiously, rubs her left temple, then says "alright, I understand. But understand my feelings as well, Miss Reimu. You are like a sister to me."

The black haired girl smiles, grabs the maid's hand, giggles when looking at her face, then pulls her by the arm as she goes after Ail while saying "come on! One more adventure should create plenty of new memories for you!"

Meanwhile, ahead of the girls, Ail has stopped right in front of the semi-invisible barrier that separates that eternal autumn morning from whatever may wait for him at the Misty Lake.

He inspects that barrier carefully and puts all his concentration on it, {_So, are you really letting them follow you?_} and then he loses that concentration to reply to the spirit in thought.

"_I have no choice. Reimu clearly said she would follow me anywhere, even if I said no._"

He lifts his hand and waves it around the land's invisible separation, and continues thinking "_she's dead-set on protecting me... and **him**, even though I told her everything that's going on. She took it like it was nothing new to her._"

{_Sanae would do that same for you. I'm sure you know that, right?_}

The boy nods, and then softly says "yes, I do know; and it makes me feel a little bit guilty. She shouldn't be doing this-"

"Come! Come Mama Alice! This way, hurry!"

They boy cuts his sentence short and bends low to the ground to hide behind some bushes. {_Hey, what's going on now? Why are you hiding?_}

He observes as Shanghai, Alice and Hourai rush toward the mountains, and how the little blonde in blue keep flying ahead and edging the others to follow.

"Come on, hurry up! I don't know if these sparkly things he gave me will last."

The puppeteer catches up and quickly whispers "but Shanghai, you know we aren't supposed to go there."

The little girl groans and says "I told you, I have permission for myself and three guests; now no more lagging behind; come on!"

Ail watches them move away, then happily whispers "this is great, Mima. She's doing what I asked her to do! I wonder if she succeeded with- ...Um, Mima?"

"Why are you calling that evil spirit now?" whispers Reimu from his left; startling him to jump back while waving his arms around.

He face palms when he realizes the chuckling girls planned on surprising him, then sighs and says "remember when I told you how your Ail talks to my mind? Well, guess who else is inside my head?"

Reimu and Rika stare at the boy with confusion, then at each other, then back at the boy, then the black haired girl pulls out a silver gohei from behind her back and asks "are you sure an exorcism won't work on you?"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Hakurei Shrine, Rika mops the floors on the veranda on that winter morning, but sighs at the futility of her efforts when more snow begins to melt from the roof and falls on her dry, clean floors.

She places the mop inside the almost-empty bucket to her right, wipes her forehead, then looks inside to Reimu and Suika, both which are enjoying a hearty breakfast of soup, rice, and tofu.

The shrine maiden smiles at her maid and chuckles "I told you it would be impossible."

Rika smiles back as she activates her Soraogan blood limit, says "I'll be back in a moment," then four white ethereal wings grow out of her back, she disappears for four seconds, and then reappears on the veranda without the extra set of wings.

She squeezes the excess water out of the mop into the now-full bucket while Reimu chuckles again and says "I see. So you got the roof too. Well, since you're done, come on over and join us."

Suika merely nods with a full mouth, swallows in a most unlady-like manner, drinks from the tea mug on her left, then belches contently before rubbing her belly.

Both Reimu and Rika glower at the disgusting little oni, and the angelic maid is about to scold that horned little girl when another girl calls from the trees "I finally found ya angel girl. At last, I get to test myself against cha for reals!"

The girls from the shrine stare at the foxy figure leaning against one of the farthest trees in front of the shrine's entrance.

The girl knows the first demand will be "show yourself," so she jumps over the sleeping trees and lands on the snow in front of the veranda, smiling at the maid and saying "hi-ya toots."

Rika gasps with surprise and says "it's you; the youkai girl from the resort!"

The vixen youkai has shoulder-length wavy orangey-red hair, orange eyes, long black fox ears, an orange fox tail with a white tip, and a gorgeously athletic body.

She wears a black coat, a black skirt that reaches to her knees, dark brown boots, a warm and dirty brown scarf around her neck, and a cute red ribbon adorns her right ear.

The vixen youkai points at Rika, grins viciously, then says "that's right big-boobs, an' I'm 'ere to challenge ya to a fight. Danmaku, and spell cards, an' all that noise!"

From inside the shrine, Reimu sigh impatiently, then angrily says "hey, girl, leave Rika alone, alright. Go back to the forest and eat rabbits, or whatever it is that you eat."

The youkai girl snarls at the shrine maiden, yet she speaks calmly. "My respects to the assassin maiden, but this here challenge's fer yer maid, so butt out, and keep yer trap shut."

There's a wide, wriggled smile on Rika's face when she turns her head to look at her mistress when she happily says "please allow me to accept this challenge, My Lady!" hiding her ignited fury from everyone.

She turns her head to look at the youkai with a rather cold grin and continues "that way I'll get to teach her some manners after I've trounced her."

The vixen youkai guffaws while holding on to her stomach, but then she quickly recovers and returns a challenging stare to the shrine maid, then says "don' go and make me laugh into submission bouncy girl! I would consider that cheatin'!"

Reimu sighs in defeat, says "alright, okay, go ahead and accept your challenge;" and then the happy maid cheers and rushes over the youkai.

She extends her hand to the visitor and says "we never introduced ourselves last time so... my name is Rika Onkamikami. Pleased to meet you, Miss..."

The vixen stares at the offered hand for a while, scoffs, accepts the hand-shake, and says "I'm just-a nameless youkai, Girly Rika. Pleased to meet-cha. An' now don't go thinkin' we're all buddy-buddies now. You gimmie all ya've got in the fight, cuz I sure ain't holdin' back."

The angelic maid smiles confidently and says "agreed. But now then, since you don't have a name, how about I give you one if I win this challenge; deal?"

The vixen youkai raises an eyebrow, then ponders for a moment; thinking of her chances of winning, the possibilities, curses and blessing of having a name; and then smiles and says "fine, it's a deal, but if I win, you will give me _yer_ family's name to keep as mah own!"

The proposal stumps the shrine maid for a moment and is tempted to say no almost immediately, but after looking at those orange eyes for a while, she nods and says "I accept your terms."

The two girls smile at each other, then the eager vixen jumps back and says "alrighty then, comin' at cha!" and then she rushes toward Rika with a speared hand lifted up to her face."

The shrine's maid easily holds her back with one hand on the forehead, causing said youkai girl to flail her arms wildly while demanding "hey, what's the big idea! C'mon, put up yer dukes bouncy boobs."

The shrine's maid flaps her wings while chuckling her annoyance out of her system, then says "hold on now, we don't want to make a mess of things here. Let's go to the back. I got an arena ready for just such challenges."

The vixen girl snorts as she nods, then says "alrighty then, Missy! But don't cha dare stop me like that again! If I wasn't holdin' back I would-a flattened you under my boots!"

Rika merely chuckles again and makes her way to the back, while the youkai girl panics in her mind and thinks "_shit, crap, fuck, dammit all straight t' hell! This girl is tougher than she looks!_"

Reimu and Suika each grab one of the youkai girl's arm, getting quick complaints from the girl while the shrine maiden says "oh no, we're not going to hurt you."

"We're just making sure you don't turn tail and run," finishes the oni with a child-like smile on her face, all while the vixen kicks and complains "just lemme go! I can walk on my own, stupid creeps! Let go I say!"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, Kimi is in her room, paying great attention to the reflection on her tall mirror, and ignoring the boring melting snow sliding down her window.

She tilts her hips left and stretches out her chest, takes a deep breath as she turns her hips right and tucks her stomach in, then turns around and looks back to check out her tight butt in those white shorts.

She smirks while narrowing her left eye and says "oh yeah, I definitely got it."

She suddenly notices a dark legless girl behind her being reflected on the mirror and gasps, turns around with an anxious and expectant look in her eyes, and stares at the empty spot next to her bed.

Memories of her carefree days with Kali suddenly flood her mind and tears well up under her eyes.

"No! I don't miss her. I'm not that weak." says the girl to herself while trying to suppress her sorrow.

She looks out the window and scowls, snarls softly before grinning, and then she says "I wonder if that stupid ice fairy will even recognize me now?" all to distract her mind.

The door to her room bursts open with a loud bang, and quickly enters the black cat with three tails, growling while hopping on the bed and running on the walls afterward.

Kimi points at the cat and is about to tell it to leave when Flandre rushes into the room, wearing a cute, long-sleeved lilac pajama and screaming her head off while shooting red bullets at the evil cat.

The shadow girl isn't certain when exactly was she tackled out of the room through the window, but she is certain she's going to punch that girl on the head when she gets back inside.

She flips once and lands on her feet on the snow outside, then a second later, Flandre drops head-first on the dragon's head, making said woman grumble and grind her teeth while balling her hands into tight fists.

"How in the _hell_ did he do a triple German Suplex in just one second!?" shouts the furious blonde.

The orange haired woman grabs the little unamused vampire by the neck and quickly pulls her off her head, and then places her right in front of her face to threateningly whisper "you never mess with my alone-time, you little bitch!"

She winds up her left fist, but Flandre bites the woman's nose and forces her to let go so she can nurse that wound, then the little destructive force of unnatural nature rushes back inside with her fists in the air while screaming "I'm skinning that blasted monster _TONIGHT_! You hear me Azzhara!? YOU'RE DEAD"

Kimi finishes rubbing her throbbing nose and glares at the little girl, but scoffs and stomps away while muttering "not worth my freakin' time!"

She reaches the gate and easily jumps over it, and after landing on the other side she looks to her left at the sleeping Meiling and grins mischievously.

"_She's sleeping. She must have felt my qi, though. I have to do this with the outmost care._"

While the devilish girl thinks this, she suppresses her qi and tip-toes very slowly toward the resting gate guard.

She places her face close to Meiling's, pucks her lips, then lets her qi flow normally again so that the gate guard wakes up with a pervert kissing her right on the lips.

The realization slowly reaches the mansion's guardian, her face turns tomato red, and even though her screams are muffled, she tries to call for help while she's being forcefully pecked by her shadow self.

After the rough peck-kissing is done, Meiling catches her breath before screaming "**are you out of your _miiiiiiind!?_**"

Kimi smiles mischievously while shrugging right in front of the girl, and says "don't you tell me you didn't like waking up to a kiss from me, girlie?"

"**GRRROOOOAAAAARRRRR!**"

The Chinese-themed girl's mighty roar comes with a furious and unforgiving right hook that sends the smiling shadow dragon flying straight toward the lake. The girl doesn't seem bothered by it, and waves back at the gate guard while flying away.

This infuriates Meiling even more, but after throwing two jabs to the air in front of herself, she sighs and relaxes, then says "that girl is really pushing it."

"Tell me about it..." says Sakuya, who sits over the top of the gate wall while tossing and catching a silver knife and looking completely unamused.

She looks down with her eyes at the startled Chinese-clothed girl, but then sighs and returns her flat gaze toward the airspace the shadow girl was currently occupying.

Kimi lands on her feet and slides backward toward the lake's shore. She stops right on the edge of the water, and half-smiles when looking back at the shore.

When she turns around, her half smile turns into flat lips as she stares at an interesting situation.

Cirno the ice fairy, who has short light-blue hair, blue eyes, and wears a long blue dress with sharp white waves adorning the bottom, a pair of light-blue boots, and has six icicles for wings; the middle pair being the largest; is being held from the back of her dress by another woman.

This woman has lavender eyes, curly lavender hair, and wears a white hat, a blue vest over a white short-sleeved dress, a blue skirt, and has a silver pin representing the alchemic symbol for silver on the right of her chest.

Kimi looks at Letty Whiterock's annoyed smile, and asks "she's been pissin' you off again?"

The yuki-onna smiles while nodding, then asks "you've been teasing the Chinese girl again, haven't you?"

The shadow girl smiles happily while nodding.

Letty sighs, waves Cirno in front of herself, and asks "so, can you take care of this one for a bit?"

A deadly grin takes Kimi's face as she stares at Cirno with hungry eyes; making the poor little ice fairy whimper with fright; and nods while hissing "I'll take _GOOOOOOD_ care of her!"

The women smile at each other, both start chuckling lightly, progress to laughing, then end up cackling like mad women, and then Cirno is tossed to Kimi's capable hands.

"Have fun with your fairy." casually says Letty while walking away.

"Hey, I'm nobody's fairy!" exclaims the little girl while dangling from her skirt.

Kimi shakes her up a bit and says "oh yes you are! You are _mine_ now."

Flandre comes running straight to the girls while crying "help me! Get the little *****er away from me, PLEASE!"

Azzhara rushes after her, growling while jumping from three to tree, and before the blonde reaches the dragon and fairy, the black cat jumps on her back and clings on to her skin, then pushes her against a tree, making her scream for help.

Kimi and Cirno look at each other, and then the shadow girl asks "wanna get outta here?"

"And how!" exclaims the ice fairy. ...And so they leave; leaving pajama-Flandre and Azzhara wrestling all around on the cold snow.

* * *

Back at the Hakurei Shrine, Rika and the nameless vixen face each other inside a large semi-transparent barrier that makes a wide rectangular arena for them to fight in without damaging the surroundings.

The maid has a golden gate floating on her side and looks confident and ready toward her opponent with her thunder sword ready in its scabbard under her family sword's own.

The vixen is putting up a very convincing brave front, and appears to be ready to strike that winged maid at any time, but sudden twitches around her knees, elbows, and ears, as well as the cold sweat on her forehead and the held-back fear in her eyes give her true feelings away.

Reimu, Suika, Marisa and Suzaku are at the veranda with some cookies on a tray between the shrine maiden and the witch; as per-usual whenever there's a challenge for Rika; and the vermilion bird is enjoying it the most this time, seeing as she's roosting on the shrine maiden's soft lap.

"Let's make this simple, okay sweetie," calls the maid from her side of the field, making the vixen gasp softly. "One spell card each, physical attacks and danmaku are allowed. The victory goes to the one that knocks out her opponent, forces her to quit, or, of course, makes the other fail her spell card. Is that alright?"

The vixen gulps and nods while thinking "_holy shit gods, what ave I done!? This girl's strong. B-but wait, she said we could use danmaku 'n stuff! Maybe I can still kick bouncy-boobs' sweet butt!_"

Some level of confidence returns to the vixen, and she appears more relaxed than before, making Rika smile when she notices.

She points at the maid and says "that's all great, sexy girl. Now get ready ta lose yer name to me!"

The shrine maid giggles, then sweetly says "alright then. Let's begin."

At that very moment, Rika runs over to the vixen and is already on top of her with that sweet smile on her angelic face, and her thunder sword raised above her head and crackling with electricity, ready for a power strike.

The poor vixen lower her ears until they are almost buried under her hair while she thinks "_shit, fuck, shit, dammit all, RUN!_" and as if having being pushed, she drops on her hands and knees and scurries away fast enough to avoid the sword strike.

"Aw chucks, I missed her," comments Rika in a somewhat disappointed tone. "I better try again~"

The vixen youkai stops and turns around, then shouts while raising her fists above her head "ya crazy bitch! Are ya tryin' t' kill me!?"

The angelic maid looks confused at the challenger, then looks at her sword, and then asks "are you really that weak? You should have told me one sword swing could kill you. I could have gone a little easier on you."

The youkai girl gasps when she realizes what she just did to herself, but being a fox she's already come up with an idea to save her reputation, and with a glowering face she lowers her arms and shouts "that's not what I meant!"

"Y-you just caught me off ma' guard, bouncy boobs! I... I wasn't ready! Yeah, that's right! You attacked me when I was preparin' myself!"

The angelic maid sighs while placing her hands on her hips, but then she takes a defensive stance and says "alright then, this time I'll wait for you to attack me when you're ready!"

The vixen grins mischievously, lifts her hands up to chest height, aims them at the angel-winged girl, and says "got cha, ya stupid girl! EAT FIREBALLS!"

Fireballs the size of Remilia burst right out of the vixen's hands and rush straight to the calm angel-winged maid.

Rika merely smiles, giggles sweetly, and then she jumps into the golden gate to her right, jumps out of it swinging her water sword with perfect speed and accuracy, and ends up turning all the fireballs near her to smoke in an instant.

The kitsune girl roars while stomping hard on the melting snow, then points at the maid and shouts "you cheatin' little bitch! I'm gonna-!", but gasps when she sees the girl moving toward her and jumps away from a slash of that water sword.

She scowls while airborne and shoots a curtain of swaying fireballs at the maid out of spite, but Rika flies after her and cuts through those bullets while smiling and humming to herself.

"Argh! This is a fight, not a fucking ballet!" roars the vixen in anger.

The angelic maid appears behind her, says "I've had enough of your foul mouth in this shrine young lady," and then she strikes the back of the nameless girl's head with her sword's hilt and sends her flying face-first to the ground. "Now stay your tongue if you can't control it!"

The vixen slowly pushes herself up while spitting out dirt and snow, and when she finally gets on her knees, her cheeks turn red with rage, and she begins to growl inward.

She hears the flutter of Rika's clothes against the wind, and then turns around and shoots a fireball the size of her head, successfully hitting the maid on the chest and pushing her away.

From the veranda, Reimu munches on a cookie while casually saying "she got mad."

Suika and Marisa nod, while Suzaku merely coos and forces her head near the shrine maiden's hand so that said girl scratches her some more.

At the arena, the young kitsune youkai shakes the lingering fire off her hands, stands up, picks a spell card from under the tanktop under her coat, then lifts it and declares "no more playin' around with you, silk wings! Fire Sign, Blazin' Snake-Fox!"

Rika readies her water sword at the mention of 'Fire Sign', and waits as fire magically appears around the kitsune and waves all around her.

The fire takes the shape of a tree-tall fox with a snake's body, and it coils around its master as it waits for a command.

The nameless vixen points at the angelic maid and says "bite her," then the fire creature rushes to the maid; its flames crackling and roaring with intensity.

From the veranda, Reimu face palms while shaking her head, and says "and it's already over."

Suika giggles, takes a gulp from her gourd, and then says "that young girl didn't even know how to fight properly to begin with."

Inside the arena, Rika is scratching the fire fox's head and cooing with delight when her fingers are met with a warm and fuzzy delight of a very safe fire spell.

On the other side of the arena, the vixen mimics the delighted faces and moves the fire fox makes as the maid scratches it, and then blushes when the maid scratches the magical fox under the chin, making the youkai act as though she's the one being scratched.

The spell times out, and the nameless girl falls down to the ground on her face, though she feels as though is floating in mid-air after being treated by that angel's hands.

Reimu stands up, lifts her right hand, and loudly declares "and Rika is the victor!"

"**_WHAT!?_**" shrieks the fox girl as she pushes herself up.

* * *

Moments later, inside the living quarters of the shrine, Suika, Marisa, Reimu, and Rika surround the vixen, who repeatedly demands a rematch, but remains ignored.

She eventually gives up on the screaming and demanding, and waits for her name to be decided.

"How about Tama, or Tamamo?" asks the shrine maiden, to which the oni replies "no, no, she should call her Myu! Pfff HAHAHAHA! Myu-Fox!"

Marisa laughs for a bit, and then says "nah, she should name her Kuro. Ooh, ooh; how about Mii!?"

The angelic girl remains silent to all of this, and simply holds her chin while looking at the vixen, as if studying her thoroughly and with outmost care.

"Chiaki..." mutters the maid, making the rest of the girls quiet as they stare at her with curiosity.

Reimu moves closer to the winged girl and asks "Chiaki, huh? Well, she does have an autumn feeling; what with her fur colors."

Rika smiles sweetly and softly claps her hands together, turns her attention to the vixen youkai and happily says "it is decided then. From today onward, your name shall be Chiaki Onkamikami!"

"**_WHAT!?_**"

Everyone, even Reimu, is surprised when the maid declares this, then the shrine maiden asks "Rika, you do understand what you are doing, right? Just giving her a name makes her your familiar, but adding your family name, just like that?"

The maid nods firmly while Chiaki furiously says "no! This is way too much! I demand a rematch immediately! I won't give up my freedom so easily-eh!?"

Rika's face is now right in front of the kitsune's, and though smiling, she emanates a dangerously stern aura while saying "you lost the battle fairly, regardless of the methods I used, so uphold your honor with dignity. And Miss Reimu..."

She turns to face her mistress and softly says "yes, I am sure. She's young and a little headstrong, and quite rude too, but she's got plenty of spirit, and even though she's trying to hide it, she's a good girl. Just look at her face; she loved the name!"

Chiaki scowls while looking down the floor with a wriggled smile and pink cheeks, failing to hide the fact that she's actually happy about the name.

When she realizes all eyes are on her, she manages to fake glowering at the maid; even though her cheeks are still pink; points at the girl, and says "this ain't over! I want my freedom back, ye hear! I'll find a way t' get it back, and then you'll be sorry!"

She runs off after the girls spread out to open a path out, and when she's out the door, Rika sweetly calls "take care~! I'll be calling you over for dinner, so don't wander off too far."

"Okaaayyyy~" sweetly calls the vixen back. A few seconds pass, then she suddenly shouts back "NO! Th-that's not what I meant! Argh! I'll get cha for this, Miss Rika!"

As Chiaki's voice gets fainter, the girls giggle amongst themselves until Reimu says "well, you gave her a name, so now you have a second familiar; and she's tsundere to boot."

She looks up and down at Marisa and continues "kinda makes me want to have a familiar of my own. That would be so cool."

The witch frowns and angrily says "heeeeyyyy, don't get funny ideas like that!" but then she places her finger on her lower lips and looks to the ceiling, and after giving it enough thought, she says "although getting married to Reimu doesn't sound too bad."

A yin-yang orb falls solidly on the perverted blonde's head while the shrine maiden looks around as though having seen a ghost, then says "hmm, I thought I saw a spirit just now."

She shrugs and says "oh well, must have been my imagination."

Marisa crouches low to the floor while holding her head, and mutters "so violent."

Meanwhile, Rika, and Suzaku, who perches on her master's shoulder, walk to the veranda, look toward the direction where they feel Chiaki is, then the vermilion bird says "_I think you shouldn't have done that, Master. There's something off about her._"

The angelic maid scratches the red bird's head, making her coo with delight, and says "don't worry Suzu-chan. She acts tough and rude just to make herself look strong, but I can see how vulnerable she really is; she's hurt and needs a lot warmth and love. Chiaki seems dull now, but I'll be certain to make her shine. You'll see."

Meanwhile, at a fogy road, where trees seem to make a wall that forces wanderers down a dirt road, Mima floats in slow zigzags while moaning loudly.

Her arms hang limp and her eyes are completely blank, yet she continues onward, down the foggy path to who-knows-where.

* * *

Ail, Reimu and Rika are now at the Misty Lake's shores, where snow and ice rule the cold and silent night.

The snow crunches under their feet with each step they take, and it seems to be making double the noise due to the fact that nobody is talking.

This silence; both physical and mental; is making Ail anxious and paranoid, so he decides to break it up.

"Hey, is it just me, or does this place seems gloomier and darker than before?"

Reimu gasps softly after stopping for a moment, but then she continues her walk at a quicker pace.

Rika stops and holds the boy's shoulder, allowing the black haired girl to pass them both, then whispers "it's because you, or rather the Ail _we_ know, used many fairies as a power source when you last battled Remilia."

He looks around the water and at the dark gaps between trees, while horrible memories of himself sucking energy from the many fairies in the area, including Cirno, flood his mind while the peasant maid continues.

"You turned many of them into dark fae, and all of them decided to live _here_ around the lake. It's been a miracle that they have kept to themselves all this time, but when they come out to attack, they end up killing someone or destroying something, and they give Miss Renko and Miss Maribel a really hard time every time."

When she's done speaking Ail is left in a depressive state, which the winged girl takes notice of immediately, and sounding surprised at what she sees, she says "you really are so different. _You_ are the man Miss Reimu speaks of whenever she's reminiscing."

The dense boy lifts his face, smiles weakly, and then says "I am so sorry for everything. I promise to think things more carefully from now on, and turn this existence around; back into what it should be."

Rika stares blankly at the boy, seriously confused about what he just said, while Reimu remains sulking within earshot; hurt greatly by the fact that the man she fell in love with is right there, but unlike how she remembers, his heart doesn't belong to her, and so she cannot even hold him the way she would like to without turning the moment awkward.

At that very moment, Ail jumps to her right with a sword of light on his hand, then he swings it several times to cut a large sliding iceberg into cubes before it crushed her.

"Stay sharp, Reimu," he commands while looking around for Cirno, the obvious attacker, while said cubes drop on the snow.

The darkness of then night mixed with the mist coming from the frozen lake is making it harder for anyone to see farther than four feet.

Another iceberg slides straight to the boy, but this time it's Rika who gets in its way, and with a swing from her family's sword, she pushes the large ice cube back as it shatters into eight sharp pieces.

"HEY, that's not fair!" cries Cirno from the darkness. "You're not supposed to use my attacks against me!"

The ice fairy's voice sounds strange to the dense one, as if it's hiding sadness behind bravery, and thinking hard and fast while Rika deflects random icicles from the darkness, he loudly calls "Cirno, what's wrong? Come and greet us properly!"

The ice attacks stop and everything becomes eerily silent again, then the air is filled with the terrified shriek of the ice fairy, who apparently starts running around and slipping on the ice.

The little fairy runs straight at Ail; looking scared beyond though; crashes against him, and falls on her butt in front of him.

"Here, let me help you," softly says the boy while offering his hand to her, but the moment she hears him, she starts kicking and screaming.

He and Reimu try to calm her down, but then the scared ice fairy jumps forward in her attempt to fly away, and gets caught by Ail.

Her pale skin bleaches when she sees his hands on her arms, and then she screams as though she's being brutally murdered. "HELP! HEEEELP! AIL IS TRYING TO TAKE MY POWERS AGAIN!"

She starts to sob and cry while desperately trying to kick herself away, while the boy, knowing it's too late, loudly says "Cirno, I would never do that to you! Just look at me in the eyes! You're smart! I know you'll see I'm the good Ail!"

Rika tackles Reimu and Ail to the ground just before several clumps of chilling bullets blast a freezing crater where the two were standing with the ice fairy.

Cirno is in the center of the attack, but she merely absorbed the icy bullets, and is quickly airborne and taking refuge behind Letty Whiterock, and shaking some frost bites off her cheeks and hair.

The yuki-onna's eyes glow white as she looks down at the trio, then smiles and chuckles naughtily when spotting Ail, and in a seductively playful tone she says "well, if it isn't dear Anilan. I thought we had an agreement, dear. But then, perhaps you miss little 'ol me, and my... abilities?"

The dense boy groans and hugs himself as though freezing where he stands, while dreadful memories fill his head.

He can see himself being frozen by sub-zero winds and feeling weak and tired, even though the ice itself stings his entire skin painfully enough to keep him wide awake.

His skin turns bluish as he falls on his knees, and when he looks up, he sees Letty above him, chuckling softly while admiring his semi-frozen body.

Free from the memory, the dense boy looks up at the cold youkai with fear, and softly says "I didn't know I was... [_Letty. She possesses one of my most deadly of weaknesses. Run away from her._] ...so weak against the cold."

The yuki-onna grins vilely and says "that's the same thing you said the first time I punished you. Regardless, I didn't kill you last time upon the agreement that you would never come back here, and yet here you are again. Guess it's time to fulfill my end of the deal."

When Ail starts to shiver, Reimu and Rika stand in front of him, then the black-haired girl exclaims "back off youkai! We're just passing through!"

The angelic girl raises her family sword to chest height and adds "so please don't get in our way, Miss Letty, or we will have to use force."

"Reimu..."

Both girls turn around to face Ail, and the ex-shrine maiden gaps when she sees her husband's red eyes looking dearly back at her.

She rushes into his arms and sobs while holding him tight, trying to say how much she's missing him, but choking on her tears.

He combs her hair with his hand when trying to be as comforting as he can, while softly saying "Reimu, my love, be strong. I'm still not strong enough to maintain control over this body, but I'll soon get it back, and I'll return to you, but for now you must go back home and wait for me!"

"What!?" shrieks the girl. "No, I won't leave you! Ail, come home with me!"

"No Reimu, it's too dangerous! Letty, she's..."

The boy becomes quiet and stiff, Reimu starts to cry out his name, then Letty starts to laugh and declares "time to cut this _disgusting_, heart-warming scene short! Cold Sign, Cold Snap!"

After the spell card activates, a thick fog covers the entire area, leaving everyone blind. There are sounds struggle, and then both Rika and Reimu can be heard calling for Ail.

The boy knows he's been caught by the winter spirit, but NegaAil's sudden intrusion has left his body temporarily paralyzed, so all he can do is wait while he's being carried away.

* * *

After what feels like an hour later, Ail wakes up on the snow-covered ground between two tall bald trees and some bushes, while a most welcoming voice keeps pestering him to wake up.

{_Come on Ail, wake the hell UP! Dammit, it's like trying to wake Marisa up in the early morning!_}

"Mmm, M-Mima?" whispers the boy as he slowly opens his eyes and tests his body out. He is quickly filled with relief when he finds out he's no longer paralyzed.

{_Don't move too much. Those two are still out there looking for you!_}

He looks around himself, getting some snow stuck on his sideburns while he does, then he can hear Cirno crying "no, let's leave him! He'll kill us!"

"Shush you little nuisance!" commands Letty. "We'll keep looking until we find him and kill him, and that is final; unless, of course, you want me to abandon you here while he's lurking about."

The ice fairy blubbers for a while before finally saying "n-no please! Don't leave me!"

{_That NegaAil did one hell of a number on them; especially that icy nuisance!_}

[_I... t-that was a terrible mistake from my part._]

Both Ail and Mima express their confusion when the vile boy speaks with true regret, and then the memory hits Anilan in a manner that even Mima is wowing at what they see.

**FLASHBACK**

Ail and Cirno are blown away from the Scarlet Devil Mansion's gates, and after landing on their backs they both watch with horror as a massive scarlet sword waves around in the air while Flandre cries "why do you want to hurt onee-chan, huh!? Ail lied to me! You don't like me, you are being mean!"

The boy and the fairy look at each other, then the ice fairy asks "what were you doing in there? They are twice as mad than ever!"

The boy grabs the little fae by the arm and pulls her farther away from the mansion while saying "I tried to kill Remilia. Now run before they kill us instead!"

[_I hadn't noticed then, but I had lost control of my powers after my fight with Flandre. Safe to say what happened next is something I enjoyed greatly, but regret deeply._]

Cirno starts to scratch Ail's fingers while screaming "wait! You're hurting me! LET ME GO! IT HUUUURTS!"

By the time he realizes what he's done, his hand is glowing with nature's energy, and soon after, that energy starts coursing though his body.

He drops Cirno to the ground on her face, where she breathes hard as though having run a marathon, then she slowly pushes herself up to look at those maddened red eyes on the boy.

Anilan trembles and smiles viciously while Cirno's energy courses through and corrupts him, and even though she has a bad feeling about this, the ice fairy stays in place and anxiously asks "Ail? A-are you alright? Wh-why are you... smiling like...?"

He locks his maddened gaze on the little fairy, frightening her a great deal, and hisses "this power. I never knew. It feels so _good_! Give it to me Cirno-chan! Give it all to me!"

The weakened fairy doesn't even have the chance to crawl away by the time Ail grips her arms and holds her in the air once more.

She screams when he starts sucking her energy; the boy cackling madly when the purity of nature's power fills his being; but then he drops her after a boom, just as she's about to black out.

Daiyousei, a fairy with green hair tied to a side-ponytail, blue eyes and golden and glass wings, who wears a blue dress with a white trim, is shooting Ail's back relentlessly.

The moment she stops her attack, the boy turns slowly and frightens her with an unhinged look on his face.

"GATHER!" she shouts to the air, and suddenly there is a group of at least fifty or more fairies ready to attack.

Daiyousei backs away to the lake before turning around and shouting "a thief of nature's force stands before us! Purge the world of this fiend!"

**Flashback Over**

Ail now sits against a tree while looking at the snow between and around his feet in both disgust and shock, and softly whispers "I'm impressed. You seem to truly regret doing that."

[_I had no quarrel against the fairies, and Cirno was a good ally and friend; ironic as that may be. I'll admit I loved the rush of that energy coursing through my body, but the price paid for it..._]

An image of a snarling Daiyousei with purplish skin and bloody jagged teeth invades Ail's mind, though only for a second. [..._Was far too steep; and by the time I kicked the habit, it was too late._]

{_There's more to that story than what you are telling us, isn't there?_}

[_As sharp as ever; yes, there's more. I used that energy to fight Remilia and Flandre, and almost had them beat. I just needed another recharge and it was a done deal, but that's when I realized what I had done. It's now too late for all of those faeries I turned, so don't go thinking you can save them, kid._]

{_Wait, Ail, what are you doing?_}

Anilan stands up, preparing himself to confront this harsh reality, and with steeled determination he says "and so, Letty actually stepped in to keep me... I mean _you,_ from turning any more, and reaching the fairies of the lake. In fact... [_seeing as she and Cirno are my weaknesses_ _I had to ask **her** to keep me away, and as part of the agreement, she gets to govern over this part of Gensokyo until I die, or she tires of the dark fairies._]"

"That's not all," begins the dense boy. "She is to kill me if I ever get too close to this area. I better get Reimu and Rika and get the hell out of here!"

[_Good idea! Oh, and speaking of my darling; you better keep her safe kid, or I swear to the Hakurei god, Suwako, and to Kanako, I will destroy your mind. Just a scratch on her and you can kiss your sanity goodbye!_]

* * *

That bright morning, at the Hakurei Shrine, Kyo, who carries around a tied-up and gagged Medicine in a neat black and red backpack that's strapped to his back, walks over to the donation box and says "and now, half of your allowance will be donated to the Hakurei Shrine. You should be happy, young lady."

The blonde tries hard to protest and curse, but her gag is too tight for her to do anything other than moan and squirm.

The muscled boy chuckles vilely, as he places the money into the box, then says "sticks and stones, you little monster. Maybe next time you'll think twice before cutting a girl's hair off."

"Thank yas," says the donation box after receiving her donations, then the boy waves his hand, and with a smile he casually says "you're welcome."

He starts walking away from the box, but stops at the fifth step, rewinds back to the donation box, then looks inside and sees Chiaki stacking the coins in order of size and type on top of her belly.

Kyo summons his fire sword and says "alright youkai, get out of there and leave those coins inside, or I'll cut you in half and throw you into the Sanzu River!"

The girl pops her head out of the box; this earns her a wooden grill as a hat; and glowers at the boy while saying "listen thick-head, I work 'ere, an' I would 'preciate it if you would lower your thingie there. You're scarin' worshippers, and all that noise."

The boy and doll youkai look around themselves, and while the little blonde girl sighs, the boy exclaims "what worshippers?"

The vixen points a gun-shaped hand at the muscled boy and winks while clicking her tongue, then says "that's exactly what I asked Miss Bouncy Boobs boss-ma'am."

Kyo chokes and gags with fear while looking at the vixen, who stares back with a raise eyebrow for a moment, then her entire body stiffens as she squeaks "she's right behind me," then her grill-hat slips right off her head.

Rika stands with her arms crossed over her ample chest and smiles sweetly like always, but to the trained eyes it is painfully obvious that there's a very ominous aura around that girl.

After a glint from her eye, the shrine maid coldly says "I thought I heard disgusting mouths expressing foul words. Tell me Chiaki, will there be need for punishment today as well?"

The poor vixen cries out pathetically, jumps behind the donation box, and cries "no Rika-sama, no punishment today! I just slipped; I SLIPPED I TELL YA!"

Kyo looks back at the trapped Medicine and shares a confused glance with her, and then he returns his gaze to the angelic maid who holds the terrified kitsune in her tender hands, and asks "alright, who's that girl?"

The maid chuckles softly, then says "her name is Chiaki Onkamikami. She's my new friend and familiar. She's currently in training, but I assure you, she means well; don't you Chiaki?"

The youkai girl nods while tears well up under her eyes, and with a sigh of defeat, the angelic maid says "fine, I won't punish you this time, seeing as you are sorry for what you did, but no more '_slipping up_', or I'll have to get serious on you."

Chiaki remains by Rika's side when released, and then comes the obvious question from the muscled boy. "So, how did you get another familiar?"

The maid points her finger to the ceiling while happily saying "two days ago she challenged me to a fight with our names in stake, and she lost..."

"She tricked me," cries out the angry vixen. Meanwhile, Rika continues "so I gave her a fresh new name along with my family name and, somewhat accidentally, made her my familiar."

"You must be a pretty stupid kitsune if you were tricked by this sweet girl," says Medicine, who now stands to Kyo's right, and said boy merely high-fives the girl while muttering "don't escape without telling me again."

Chiaki snarls silently, but simply crosses her arms over her chest and looks away, while Rika's ominous aura returns along with that sweet and unforgiving smile of hers.

The blonde doll youkai quickly lifts her arms defensively and says "whoa there angel girl, I'm just an innocent commenter."

"That reminds me," begins the maid while still holding that smile on her face; "why are you two here to begin with?"

Kyo looks down at the blonde girl, scowls, then says "well, little miss hair-cutter here tried to 'liberate' the doll of an eight-year old by means of example, and cut said girl's hair off. It took Luna and me a whole day to calm the little tike's mother down."

While Rika gives Medicine the stink eye, the muscled boy continues "thought I'd teach her a lesson and donate half of her allowance to the shrine."

A yin-yang orb falls on the boy's head, then, from behind him, Reimu grabs his ear and angrily exclaims "donating to the shrine is _NOT_ a punishment, Kaizo Yumeda!"

Kyo pushes her hand off of his ears, then presses his face against the girl's and shouts "it is for _her_, so suck it up armpits!"

Reimu grips him in a head-lock and grunts "you're pushing your luck, little fatty man!"

He reverses the hold and traps her in an abdominal stretch while angrily grunting "don't tell me what I can and what I can't do, little shrine lady!"

They continue reversing holds and grunting threats and insults at each other while Medicine enjoys the show along with a nice mug of warm tea; on a special waxed mug that repels poison.

Chiaki chuckles mischievously at the sight of those two humans fighting it out, then suddenly shouts "oooh~ he jus' groped you girlie! Uuu~ you disgustin' girl, you kicked 'im there!"

Rika chops the back of the vixen's head, knocking her out immediately, and then picks her up from the ground while sighing "this one lacks discipline as well."

Medicine stares wide-eyed at the maid and the vixen, but shrugs it off, takes a sip of her tea, and continues enjoying Kyo versus Reimu.

* * *

Back at the wintery night above the Misty Lake, Ail flies fast and silently near the trees around the shore while looking for Reimu and Rika, but the mist around the lake is getting thicker, and the night darker.

It's been some time since Mima has said anything, so the dense one thinks "_hey, Mima, do you think I should use some spell to light my way around?_"

After a few seconds of silence the boy calls her again in his mind, [_Save it, kid. She's been gone for a while. Just focus on finding my sweetheart, and don't do anything stupid,_] but the answer he receives makes him frown and lose some of that determination he had.

He yelps when he feels a tug on his leg the moment he decides to land, so he remains airborne while looking behind and anxiously asking "what the hell was that!?"

[_Oh shit, it's the tainted fairies! Get **outta here**, you fool!_]

The tainted Daiyousei drops on Ail's back, grips his shoulder with her clawed hands, and immediately bites the exposed side of his neck viciously.

He screams out loud and drops like lead in water as his blood spills, falling hard on the snow-covered ground with a vicious dark fairy biting and clawing him on the back.

[_Dammit boy, I told you to get outta here! Get up and move before Letty finds me; I mean, you!_]

Ail grunts with every breath he takes as he fight with the pain of having his neck and back cut to shreds by a lunatic dark fairy, and then he suddenly screams, and a spark of pure energy explodes right out of his very body, sending the dark fae on a forceful flight back to the lake.

[_YOU FOOL! Letty is going to be here any second now thanks to that scream!_]

The bloodied boy groans and whispers "I didn't know I could do that," while the tainted fairy repeatedly punches the iced lake water in a tantrum.

She snarls when she sees Ail getting up, then looks up to the dark sky and shrieks out loud.

A few seconds later, the dark gaps between the trees grow countless pairs of red eyes, and all are aimed at the anxious dense boy that foolishly takes off to the sky.

The second he's above the trees he is showered from above and below with enough danmaku to trap his Gensokyo's Reimu.

[**_MOVE BEFORE THEY CLOSE THE GAPS, YOU FUCKING IDIOT!_**]

"Right!" answers the dense one to his dark self, and quickly moves toward the widest gap between bright arrowhead bullets, noticing that the bullets coming from above are uncommonly cold; and then it hits him.

He flies through bullets like a bat out of hell, ignoring the burns from those bullets that graze or explode on his arms or legs, then that woman casually says "I found you, Ail. It's time I uphold my part of the deal. There's nothing you can say that will change my mind either. We made the contract, so that's that."

"YOU MADE A CONTRACT WITH **HER**!?" screams Ail at the top of his lungs, filling himself up with so much rage, he's nullifying the cold sensation of Letty's bullets.

[_Yes, I did, or perhaps you need me to run that by you again? I. AM. ADDICTED. TO. FAIRY. ENERGY! I had to make sure I wouldn't be tempted-_] "you idiot! Gensokyo is FULL OF FAIRIES! You could have just gone to the Forest of Magic!" [_...To come and pick on-oh shit. Now I feel like I'm as stupid as you._]

Once he's clear of the danmaku, he turns around as he rises higher up to meet with Letty herself.

The yuki-onna smiles and chuckles seductively, then says "I see; you went around absorbing other fairies' energies, and now the madness split your personality in two. This is very amusing to me."

Ail takes a spell card out of his pocket and coldly says "no Letty, you don't understand what's happening to me, yet I understand where _you're_ coming from, but I can't let you kill me. I have things to do so that I may return home."

The smile on the snow youkai's face vanishes as she materializes an ice-blue spell card on her hand, and darkly says "you dare resist me, even when you yourself wrote the contract. I am disappointed in you, Anilan!"

"Wait, stop!"

Cirno flies between the two with her arms spread open while looking at the woman, and frightfully says "Letty-sama, m-maybe we should ignore him this time! Please, I don't like him anymore, but I don't want him gone forever neither."

Letty's eyes glow intensely as she glares at the little ice fairy in her way, and darkly hisses "move, or I'm going to let the darkened take your wings again."

Cirno yelps and twitches at the thought of having the dark fairies repeatedly take her wings again, but as frightened as she is, she remains in place, though shivering and doubtful.

Ail sighs, sends a small-sized barrier in front of the fairy to get her attention, and when she's looking at him, he smiles warmly while saying "it's alright Cirno-chan, you can get out of the way now."

"But-!" Before she can protest, he continues "I promise, next time I see you, I'll be the same Ail you froze as a little dog. Remember that, Cirno-chan?"

When he realizes what he just said, he stammers until he manages to say "I mean, I won't be a dog; j-just in personality. Argh, I don't even know what I am saying anymore!" [_Idiot._]

The blue haired fairy turns around and stares at the boy with great confusion, but suddenly gasps softly and says "it's you. You're the nice Ail; the one that treated I like a friend!"

The boy nods as his response, and then softly says "Cirno, I will be all right. Go and hide while I settle this misunderstanding with Letty."

His eyes widens as he gasps upon seeing the yuki-onna chopping the ice fairy on the back of the neck and letting her fall straight down into the arms of the tainted great fairy.

He sighs with relief when Daiyousei merely holds the ice fairy on her lap and gently combs her hair, then Letty coldly says "don't worry; they won't harm her unless I tell them to. But that is no longer your concern."

Her eyes glow white as her spell card hovers over her hands, and says "now your concern is the fulfillment of the contract, and your constant resistance to doing so, Ail."

A powerful snowstorm starts forming out of nowhere as the ice witch becomes more threatening, and now with the cold wind weakening him, and the flying snow blinding him, he wonders how long he'll survive this attack.

* * *

Ail's limbs start to shake due to the cold, which makes Letty smile and say "I haven't even used my spell card, and you're shaking already? I should make this quick then."

{_Ail, what's going on? ...Oh shit! Ail, what are you doing!? Use a spell card before she does, or RUN!_}

[_C-can't... focus. M-Mima... it's so cold._]

Anilan manages to raise his right hand while thinking "i_t's so cold; b-but I must snap out of this! Ugh, so sleepy... I want to sleep,_" looks at the smiling winter spirit, and weakly says "Bl... Blas... Blast Sign, E-Expansion tha-."

{_AIL, WAKE UP! JUST SAY IT ALREADY AND CUT THIS CRAP!_}

[_Mima... this weakness... to the cold... makes me very sleepy. My mind is... shutting down._]

Letty's grin widens as she watches the boy fall into a cold-induced sleep, and with that very grin on her face she loudly declares "Cold Sign, Lingering Cold!"

The snowstorm becomes intense, and snowflakes begin to stick together and form large clumps of ice that take the shape of large birds that head straight toward the weakened boy.

Ail moans as he tries to fly left and avoid the attack, but even in flight, his body feels like a lump of lead, and the ice birds start crashing onto him one by one before he is able to move an inch.

However, instead of blasting him out of the sky, each bird that touches him covers him up in frost bites, forcing him to descend straight to the concentration of dark fairies below, while the yuki-onna sighs and says "and so the contract has been fulfilled. Don't regret this, Ail. Be proud of your bravery of having come to face me in the end, and so forget the shame of running."

The boy's consciousness fades has he lands on his stomach on the snow {_Ail, no, wake up! FLY! FLY, DAMN IT ALL!"_}, even with Mima screaming her mind off inside his own.

The dark-skinned, jagged-toothed fairies surround the frozen boy, approach him slowly, and when Letty nods, they all kneel around him and rush their drooling mouths to his body.

* * *

Mima wakes up in the middle of a busy dirt road surrounded by food and game stands attended by people dressed in black and white striped prison kimonos.

She blinks a few times and wonders what is everyone looking at, and that's when she realizes her hands are full of dumplings, cotton candy, stuffed animals, bags, and goldfishes she won off the stands.

Her mind slowly returns to her as she keeps staring at her prizes and treats, then she groggily asks "wha? Where am I?"

"The Road of Liminality, lady;" replies a rather unfriendly thin man with glasses that attends the shooting stand.

The evil spirit finally wakes up completely and starts looking around herself, then anxiously says "wait, what the hell am I doing here!? I'm supposed to be looking for Ail!"

She anxiously looks around herself, hands her entire load to a family of three, and then rushes away at full speed down the road while shouting "to the Sanzu River! AWAY~!"

"WAIT, YOU IDIOT!"

The stand owner rubs his forehead and sighs, then says to the surprised family "that idiot. She's going the wrong way."

* * *

Meanwhile, in a mansion at Mayohiga, Ran Yakumo, a nine-tailed fox youkai with short blonde hair, yellow eyes, who wears a blue panel over a white dress, and a pink two-tailed hat with several charms on it, opens a sliding door and quietly enters her master's room.

She looks around the master bedroom, and then sighs with disappointment when she sees Yukari sleeping on Ail's old bed with her arms and legs spread wide open.

The kitsune holds her hands together under her long sleeves as she approaches her master, then looks down on the sprawled woman and whispers to herself "Yukari-sama, what would others think if they ever saw you like this?"

The nine-tailed blonde starts to perform her duty of rearranging her master's limbs so that said woman can, at least, appear more dignified in her sleep.

After she arranges the left leg and moves it under the covers, a white triangular object falls off the sleeping youkai's belly.

Ran picks the pyramid up and wows while looking at its beautiful, pure white light shining from within, which is making the item itself look like a pyramid of light instead of an actual material item.

She can feel the item emanating a bit of warmth, then looks at Yukari with the corner of her eyes and says "such a beautiful thing is just for keeping her warm?"

The short-haired blonde picks the rest of her master up, and after Yukari is back into a more lady-like sleeping position, Ran gently places the pyramid back on top of her belly under the sheets and whispers "I'll ask her about it when she wakes up; It's almost Spring anyway, so it won't be that long."

And so the nine-tailed fox quietly makes her way outside the room, oblivious as to what that pyramid actually does, and thus, the chance for Ail to be free again slides the door close, and makes her way back to the living room.

* * *

To be Continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Kyo, Kimi, Azzhara, Chiaki, and Luna Rivers were created by Willie G.R.

Ail's spell card: "Blast Sign, Expansion that Soothes"; and

Chiaki's spell card: "Fire Sign, Blazing Snake-Fox", were created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami and Suzaku were created by Snapshot 2010

OCT 8 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**I want to apologize for the sudden closure to this chapter. Even back when I first wrote the draft for this particular chapter, I couldn't think of a way to make a better closure than this, but now that it's out of the way, we can push forward and move on with the plot.**

**Can't say what to expect, but if things go as planned, this visit to the SDM will be a long one, and will lead to what I suspect the few readers of this fic have been guessing. Anyways, with that said, I would have uploaded this sooner, but now Resident Evil 6 got in my way, and I'm taking time to beat it. The game is AWESOME! No, I don't care what haters say, I like the game, even with its few flaws.**

**But I digress. This is Touhou, not RE. Anyhow, I can hurry this fic up a bit, we'll be seeing the Ten Desire girls soon... but, of course, I have other plans, and want to edit/rewrite and post an old one-shot I wrote for the Aki sisters a long time ago. Ah well, let's see what happens now, eh? Oh well, until next chapter.**

* * *

Reimu: That was rather lame, Willie.

Me: Spare me! Besides, it's not my fault that you and Rika didn't go searching for Ail in his time of need.

Reimu: Oh yes it is! You're the author!

Me: Tch! W-well it's not my fault that alternate Gensokyo is so messed up!

Reimu: *Sighs and rolls eyes* You are the author! Everything that happens in there is **_your_** fault!

Me: Oh, c-come on!

Satori: And you fail again. You realize this is all karma biting you in the butt, right?

Me: *Sigh* Maybe I should rewrite everything so that you girls all like me more! Heh, maybe I could get a date with Byakuren, or maybe Sanae... or perhaps Patchouli.

Byakuren, Sanae and Patchouli: **I would rather not.**

Satori: Keep your dreams to yourself, Mister Pervert. And when are you doing something about that Gary Stu?

Me: Dammit Satori, no you too!

Satori: *Chuckles* I really enjoy messing with your head.

Tenshi: Melt his brain! He owes me the story of me and my family! MAKE HIM SUFFER!

Me: *Walks away with the wind blowing against me*

Satori and Tenshi: Oops. He's depressed again.


	10. Chapter 10

Legend: [_i_] = a sudden thought between the dialogue, or Ail/NegaAil talking to the one in control of Ail's body.

{_i_} = Mima speaking to Ail/NegaAil in his mind.

NOTICE: Strong language and dark events ahead.

Jan 10 2013 - This chapter was a MESS! So many errors, so many inconsistencies, and so many words that were halting the flow of this chapter were fixed. Lots of deletions and additions were made, and hopefully the chapter now flows well for everyone.

* * *

The eternal mid-spring morning at the Human village continues as it has in that alternate Gensokyo ever since the dreams spirits damaged the world's core.

At the market place, Gengetsu, Mugetsu, and a very reluctant Kana are handing flyers to any person or youkai that gets close; they are also sticking them on walls, food containers, and even children's backs with a "kick me" note scribbled on.

The flyers contain a crudely drawn picture of Shizuha surrounded with autumn leaves being blown by the wind, and the goddess appears to be dancing along with them with her hands in the air.

After forcing one of the fliers onto a man's busy hands, the blonde poltergeist scratches Gengetsu's feather that's lodged on her shoulder, then looks at the other blonde maid, and says "enough already! I'm sure we've spammed this plenty!"

Mugetsu turns her head to the elegant dream poltergeist, smiles, then says "you're right. I think it's time we went looking for him again. What do you say, onee-chan?"

Gengetsu holds a knife to her sister's throat, and with glowing red eyes and an ominous shadow on her face she menacingly whispers "call me _onee-chan_ again, and I'll make sure you never marry."

The nervous blonde quickly calms down, sighs, then says "oh, is that all? For a moment I thought you were going to slit my throat again. That hurts, you know."

The winged blonde sighs her annoyance off, and rubbing her forehead with the hilt of the knife she says "anyway, I think you're right. Maybe it's time we went and reported to Ail."

"Finally!" shouts Kana after tossing her fliers to the air. "And could you PLEASE remove this thing from my arm? I told you I'm not running away!"

"No." casually replies Gengetsu with a sweet smile invading her face.

Mugetsu giggles, grabs the girls by the back of their shirts, then takes off to the sky while cheering "come on girls! Let's go look for the cute boyo!"

"Argh! My shirt! My breasts! My-OUCH!"

"_Sis_, I am going to kill you of you don't let me... WAAAAHHHHH! Wedgie!"

And so their voices fade away as they leave behind a sad little house that never had a door, and which now stands sadly with its only accessible opening boarded up.

The depressing feeling emanating from the house, though strong, remains forever ignored by the humans and youkai that keep passing by, too busy to notice the weathered walls darkening as the days go by.

* * *

It's dark, the wind is blowing gently and soothing the agitated nerves, yet memories of being frozen and bitten to the death take over his hazy mind.

"It's warm," he whispers as he feels his head on something comfortable and soft, and then he feels something like silk touching his cheeks and feels as though he's back at the Moriya Shrine; back with Sanae and Budou on the comfortable couch in the warm living room.

He hears a sigh, then a sweet voice speaks softly while that silky hand continues to touch his cheeks. "Wake up, darl-Ail. We're here."

Anilan gasps softly and opens his eyes to an early-summer's late noon, a pair of loving, but hurt brown eyes; and to the realization that his head is resting on Reimu's lap.

The black haired girl smiles when she sees him, but upon looking at his golden eyes, her own eyes become pained, and her smile turns to a light frown.

The boy sighs softly as he forces himself up, and says "sorry, I'm not him."

He kneels in front of her and waits for her to place her hands on her lap, then says "I'm really sorry Reimu. I can't even feel him in me. As a matter of fact... what happened to me?"

A soft gust blows from the east, making their clothes flutter lightly when the ex-shrine maiden looks up at him and says "that's what we would like to know. Rika and I found you lying on the snow, sleeping like a baby. We had to scare off a few dark fairies, but they were more interested in Rika's sword, for some reason."

"I see. Well, thanks for getting me out of there," replies the boy while thinking "_so, my death was null. Didn't reset, but didn't die. Wonder how that one worked out for this world?_"

Reimu bows and says "you're welcome hon-I mean, Ail. S-sorry, it's just so hard for me. You are that same boy from before, but at the same time..."

She crawls closer and places her hand on his cheek, notices his reluctance to accept her touch, then smiles and continues with a cracked voice "at the same time, you're so different."

Ail closes his eyes for a moment while he tries to compose an answer for her, to ease her pained heart, then he takes her hand and holds it against his cheek, then opens them again to reveal their red color, and he smiles.

Reimu can't contain herself, lets her smile claim her face faster than she can realize it, then she jumps on the boy and lands a much wanted and needed kiss, which he both accepts and returns.

The kiss comes to an unwanted end, and both hold each other by the back of the head while keeping their foreheads pressed, then the boy speaks softly; "Reimu my love, how I've missed you so."

The girl giggles, shaking off the tiny tears from her eyes, and replies "and I have missed you too, my darling; so very much!"

NegaAil grins, stands up and pulls her along with him, wraps an arm around her shoulder, and leads her toward the dirt road while saying "well don't you worry, my love. In just one more day, I'll have enough strength to get my body back, and you and I will be back together!"

The black haired girl stops, forcing the boy to stop, and asks "darling, what will happen to the other Ail, then? You... may not like him, but he's still you; the _you_ I met long ago."

The red-eyed boy smiles at his wife, kisses her cheek, and then says "my sweetheart, you are such an angel. That other me will leave this body for good, and return to wherever is he came from with the memories of this place _burned_ into his mind, and one hell of a headache."

He places his hands on her shoulders as they face each other, and continues "but that's not the important part, my sweet. Once he's gone, I'll put these stupid youkai back in their place, and you and I will have our child!"

Reimu holds his face to surprise him, and having his full attention she shakes her head then gently insists "honey, please don't! That boy is rectifying all that you have wronged! He's turning all our friends back to _our_ side! Honey, please, listen to me, take this opportunity and make peace with everyone! Please!"

He frowns and looks away, then says "you know I can't do that. Not only did they abandon you, they deliberately went against you having a child."

"Only in your mind, my love" gently insists the girl.

"I had to put them in their place, and force them to collaborate. And you know what? Alice almost got it! All I had to do was rough her up a bit, and that was it! It's only a matter of time now!"

Reimu takes a step away from him, gives him a scolding look, and sternly says "Anilan Inmodo Leuch, you listen to me good. Sweetheart, if you continue to do what you are doing, then, against the wishes of my heart, I will have to stop you."

The boy lets a light gasp escape him as he stares at his wife in shock, and then she quickly continues "yes, I know what you have done, and frankly I am furious, disappointed and _disgusted_... but I love you too damned much, and that's why I was hoping you would somehow see the error of your ways; before it was too late."

She smacks her hips as an anxious gesture, then begs "please, my love, don't make me have to fight you! Please, take advantage of that other Ail's work. Make up with the others, restart your friendship, do what you have to do to regain their full trusts again. Please, do it for me, if not for yourself."

The boy chuckles, lets his head drop as the chuckle becomes creepy and dark, and after taking a deep breath to recover, he says "to think that I've been doing all of this for you; I did it all just so that I could take your pain away, and now here you are, asking me to stop it all _for you_. How... poetic."

Reimu takes a step back, her face fills with worry as she sees her husband slowly lifting his head, and fears he'll now attack _her_, so with her charms on hand, she prepares to see her worst fears come to life.

To her surprise, what she sees is that old, sweet smile she missed seeing since the day the boy fought Remilia the first time, and before she has a chance for anything else, he's right in front of her, holding her face with his hands.

He smiles sweetly at her, sighs, then says "my love, for you, I would take over the world in a day. I may not like this, but if that is what you wish, then perhaps I _CAN_ take advantage of this fool's work."

"My Lady; Ail! There you are! I thought I left you by the shore!"

Rika arrives just as the couple gives each other one more kiss, then the boy backs away, and says "for now, my time is up. Reimu my love, when I get this body back, I promise you that I _will_ do everything in my power to make amends with them all. For now, please take care; and I suppose you should help that idiot make amends with Remilia. She's-"

Ail's eyes close, and inside his mind he can hear NegaAil saying "_yes, once Remilia lowers her guard, I'll kill her. After she's dead, I'll see which of our old friends I can trust, and which I'll have to, huh-huh, **remove**._"

Those last words sound darker than the rest, and make Ail wake up with a gasp and looking around as though scared.

He finally notices Reimu and Rika staring curiously at him, asks "what?" then he notices the red mansion at the distance, feels a very cold chill rushing through his body, and whispers "that's right; the mansion."

* * *

That late winter's afternoon, at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, Kimi is in her room once more, looking out the window with a bored expression as she stares at the tiny patches of grass growing through the melting snow.

She sighs, slowly turns her gaze to her bed, and says "so boring. Maybe I should sleep a few years and see if things get more fun later on."

"STARBOW BREAK!"

The door to her room explodes, then the three-tailed black cat zips inside, followed by an innumerable amount of colorful orbs that explode with enough force to make the walls rattle.

Kimi is about to scream her raging lungs out when ten of those orbs explode all over her body and lift an impossibly thick cloud of smoke inside her room.

From outside, Flandre shouts "come on out Azzhara! Come out and fight me like the man you're supposed to be, you sniveling, little cheating coward!"

A soft ringing sound from within the room rapidly becomes louder, and before she knows it, one of her own yellow orbs explodes right on her face, sending her flying against a wall so hard, even her unnatural wings leave an imprint along with her body, and then she slowly slides down to the floor.

She stands up as if she hadn't received any damage and growls toward the room, then he sees the hated cat boy in his youkai form, grinning at her while holding one of her bullets on his hand.

"You ASS!" she shouts; to which the boy merely chuckles, flips his middle finger at her, and then throws the orb at her with all his might, blasting her back once more.

After sliding and rolling on the carpet for a while, the vampire finally comes to a stop while face down. She moans as she lifts her head, and when she starts to push herself back up, Azzhara rushes to her in his cat form and works his scratching magic on her.

Causing only minor scratches on the specially-made fabric, he leaves hissing like he's laughing, though is actually very frustrated for his failure.

This infuriates the blonde enough for her to miraculously recover and stand. She looks to where last the cat was and shouts "you **** cat, I'm going to *** pull off your ***** fur off and stuff your tail straight-"

A hand holds her shoulder with quite the impressive strength, making her look back with surprise to meet with Kimi's face; which is stiff with rage, her eyes are bloodshot and bloodthirsty, and she shivers wile grunting inward.

Her light-orange hair is singed, her boots have been melted off, her white shorts are dirty with burn marks, and half of her black jacket has been blasted off, leaving her gorgeous curves exposed.

The shadow dragon easily lifts the girl up by her shoulder, and although she doesn't turn her around to make proper eye contact, she furiously grumbles "I. AM GOING! TO **KILL** YOU!"

Flandre struggles to break free while shouting "hey, kill that damned Azzhara! It's _his_ fault, not mine!"

The explosion that follows causes the ground outside the mansion to shake violently, causing Meiling and Sakuya to tumble on to the gate wall for fear of falling.

After the violent shaking stops, the girls look at each other, then rush inside, though soon after they enter, Remilia's voice can be heard all the way over at the center of the lake when she shouts "**what the HELL IS GOING ON HEREEEEE!?**"

* * *

The outside of the Scarlet Devil Mansion is eerily silent, the atmosphere is most unwelcoming, and nothing but negative vibes can be felt flowing from it.

Ail, Reimu and Rika stand several feet away the front of the gate, staring at a very nervous gate guard that keeps shaking whenever she lays her eyes on them; particularly the dense boy.

Once she manages to lock eyes with his, the scarlet haired guard somehow feels herself calming down, and manages to gain the courage to say "p-please stay away, Ail. The Mistress probably knows you're here, but you should still go away. She's going to kill you if she sees you."

Anilan shakes his head to snap out of the sudden shock of hearing of someone trying to protect him, then says "Miss Meiling, I can't. I need to contact [_Heh, not if I kill her first..._] Remilia. She may have a solution to my current problem."

He does his best to ignore that bastard's voice, and subconsciously wonders if he should tell Reimu of his plans; though doing so might hurt her greatly, or turn her against him.

Meiling, after some though, and noticing those determined golden eyes looking at her, sighs in defeat and signals them to move closer, but makes sure to also signal her begging for them to keep quiet.

The trio comply and make their stealthy way to the girl, who gives the dense one a bone-crushing hug and whispers "you insane idiot you! Why did you come here? Lady Remilia is still sore about your last visit."

That's when Ail notices the girl's exhausted eyes, the weathered and torn clothes that reek of excessive use and lack of proper cleaning, and all the bruises, cuts and scars all over her skinny face, arms and legs.

"Meiling," whispers the boy with a hint of despair. "What happened to you? You look terrible."

The gate guard smiles happily, gives him a second hug; which Reimu doesn't seem to approve of; then sobs and says "I knew it. You're not the evil person the others keep saying you are."

The brown haired boy pushes himself away from Meiling and repeats "Meiling, what happened to you? Why are you like this? You're hurt, and dirty; and have you been eating properly?"

Meiling and Rika shush him, making him blush with embarrassment, and then the redhead whispers "please, keep it down. If they find out you're here again..."

She shudders as she gets back to her post and her eyes suddenly fill with great fear as she gestures them all to press themselves against the wall; and so they do as silently asked.

She slowly moves her head around the corner of the gate to take a peek, and sees Sakuya's silhouette walking away from the front window, then sighs with great relief and wipes the sweat off her forehead when the chief maid is gone.

The dense boy's eyes hide under the shadow of his hair as the realization that this, once more, is his fault, and trying to fight back his desire to shout, he says "this is my fault, isn't it? _They_ did this to you; it's all because of me, isn't it?"

The guard girl sighs, looks to the ground while nodding, and without lifting her head she says "I let you in twice, thinking you and the Mistress might make amends, but you tried to kill her both times. They blame me, and they're right to do so. I am a useless gate guard, and I deserve punishment for being so. But I had so much hope the second time you came, like when you made amends with Flandre."

Ail loses his head and exposes himself while holding Meiling by her arms and speaking loudly. "You listen to me Hong Meiling; NegaAil is a snake who tricks others to get what he wants. He doesn't care what happens to the others as long as he gets his way, so don't you dare think any less of yourself!"

Reimu would like nothing more that to plug that boy's mouth with one of her best sealing charms, which, even though aren't that powerful anymore, can do the job of shutting him up.

However, she decides to keep herself from adding to his foolishness, and remains with Rika pasted against the wall.

"Meiling," continues the boy. "You can't let them treat you like this. Earn their respect. Stand up for yourself! The Meiling I know would follow orders to the letter, but she would also demand respect, so why can't you be the same!?"

The boy stares at the girl's fearful aquamarine eyes for almost half a minute, when Sakuya suddenly answers "because the useless pile of _excrement_ knows what she did, and knows she deserves what she's got."

Reimu face palms hard, Rika draws her sword and gets in front of the black-haired girl, and both Ail and Meiling gasp as they turn their sight to the chief maid flying above the back of the gates.

She has a murderous glare aimed at the guard and the dense boy while holding several knives between her fingers, and crosses her arms over her chest before smirking and scoffing lightly.

Anilan summons a sword of pure light to his right hand and pushes the redhead to the side, then deflects countless knifes that seem to materialize from thin air.

The maid lets out a small gasp and a look of surprise when she witnesses this act, and immediately says "well, it appears you either grew a conscience, or it's something else. Usually you just watch as I stab her. This turn of events is, admittedly, very peculiar indeed."

A charm flies close to the maid's face, stopping a stealthy knife from stabbing itself on the back of Ail's head, then the maid turns her murderous red eyes to Reimu.

"Reimu, my friend, you must understand I have my orders, so if you plan on getting in my way, I have no other choice but to deal with you as well."

The ex-shrine maiden bravely stares back into those beautiful and frightening red eyes, and says "and you must understand I am his wife, and I have to protect him with my life, if I must."

Ail finally realizes what has happened, and feeling disgusted of himself, and slightly embarrassed, he anxiously says "no, Reimu, don't interfere! Let me handle this!"

The strict, brown-eyed glare aimed at him causes the dense boy to straighten up and shut his mouth, then the black haired girl says "Ail, you are merely borrowing my husband's body, so no matter what, your fights are my fights! Implant that into your thick skull and let's knock her out now before she gets serious."

At that moment, Ail sees Sanae in Reimu's place, and realizes something; that all the problems he has caused before have affected the green haired maiden as well, and even so; although she hasn't said so; he knows she would protect him the same way Reimu is doing now.

He gulps to subdue his desire to cry out his realization, nods to the peasant girl, and then turns his attention to Sakuya, who already has a spell card on hand, and a deadly smile on her face.

* * *

Sakuya grins sinisterly at the two before her, then declares "Strange Art, Illusionary Misdirection!"

"Wind Sign, Neppa Senpuujin!"

All heads turn to Rika after her spell declaration, and now Sakuya's kunai and silver knives; which appear in confusing line formations that seem to tangle in mid-air; focus mainly on the winged girl, who swings her sword with such speeds her hand and sword appear to stay in place, even though gales that leave green bullets behind it fly from said sword to the chief maid.

The winged peasant maid needs to literally dance around to avoid the innumerable knives, while shouting "get going you two! Let me handle this! Find Miss Remilia!"

Before either one can complain, she shouts "just move it! I'll be alright!"

Ail and Reimu nod to each other, and as they run to the front door, they spot Meiling crying behind the wall, curled up into a ball and trying to figure out what has happened.

Noticing this, the running boy shouts "Meiling, it's not your fault! It's not your fault!"

"Come on," shouts the ex-shrine maiden as she grabs his shoulder and drags him to the door, while the gate guard quits her crying, but remains curled up and sniffling while holding her head.

The chief maid tries to turn her spell toward the door to stop the intruders, but Rika quickly gets in front of her, waves her finger left and right while clicking her tongue, then says "eyes on the enemy."

She swings her sword impossibly fast, and after sending the sharp gale at the mansion's maid, she appears elsewhere and repeats the process over and over again, and even though she has to zip through entwining knives, she does a good job of keeping her impossible pace.

Sakuya was not ready for this and is quickly overwhelmed by the number of gales and bullets surrounding her, and ends up being struck on the back by a painful gale.

Her spell cancels out while the peasant maid's continues, but with a growl, she holds her stopwatch and slows time down by just concentrating a bit.

She can now see Rika moving around and swinging that sword still fast enough to make it look like a blur, but her concern is reading where she's going next.

She tosses a knife right in front of herself and allows time to flow normally once more, twirls left to avoid another gale, and smiles after the angelic girl's satisfying shriek of pain.

She watches with a satisfied smile as the maid pulls a knife off her bloodied shoulder, frowns and says "I didn't throw it that hard. It seems you're out of practice, Miss Rika."

The winged girl sighs with a smile, and with a defiant look aimed at the silver haired girl she replies "not at all, Miss Sakuya. I merely tried to do something rather foolish, and got myself cut deeper than intended. Still, it was worth it."

The mansion's maid raises an eyebrow in suspicion, but when nothing happens, she merely chuckles and opens her mouth to speak.

The peasant maid unsheathes her family sword with a full swing using her bloodied arm, and sends a magical blade of blood straight at Sakuya's neck, forcing the very surprised girl to bend her back to avoid the attack.

Her surprise becomes more obvious when she sees that speedy girl already on her, but has no way of avoiding the knee to her back, and merely does her best to take the kick and recover quickly.

Sakuya is sent flying upward, though she takes the chance to make some distance between her and the winged girl, and inevitably nurses her back while wincing in pain.

She glares at her opponent after soothed and angrily snarls "how dare you!"

Rika smirks smugly while shrugging, and then says "what can I say? Remilia taught me that trick the last time I was here."

The chief maid pulls the knives out of the garter on her right thigh, glares at the peasant maid with glowing red eyes, and though maintaining her elegance, she angrily says "you pathetic peasant! I'll never forgive you for using one of my mistress' spells against me."

She takes another spell card on hand and declares "I'll slit your precious neck open and feed you to our rats, you white-blooded wretch! Maid Secret Skill, Killing Doll!"

Rika has to admit, the speed in which Sakuya is throwing those knives all around her and stopping time to set countless more at random, is very impressive, but regardless, she has to move before she loses her clothes, or becomes a bloody pin cushion.

Either way, she needs something to counter this flower-like pattern, and her wind sword is not cut for it, so she takes a great risk and enters the gate to emerge with her fire and ice swords.

The moment she jumps out, she is caught off guard and grazed by enough knives to cut her into tiny pieces, and yet, to her luck, all they do is cut tears in her brown kimono and graze her skin, but nothing too deep to be of concern.

Once free of the knives, she jumps back to a safe spot, tosses a spell card in the air, and shouts "I'll make you regret that! Fire and Water Sign, Embraco Endo no Zeppa Juujishou!"

The spell card activates with a bang, and then the winged girl unsheathes her fire sword, which comes with a fiery slash that blasts large groups of knives at once.

The silver haired maid grunts with frustration and adds more knives to the spell; these one flying in straight lines and spreading on the sides; which gives the brown haired maid a harder time, even with her explosive fire waves blasting knives by the numbers.

A group of randomly set knives explode before beginning their flight, and spin their way back to their master, tearing parts of her clothes, and even cutting off one of her sleeves.

Both girls' clothes, faces and limbs are full of cuts, though none are deep or lethal, so they continue with the shower of knives and fire, and now wait to see who tires out first.

One of Rika's fire slashes explodes next to Sakuya, causing her to flinch and give the opposing maid the chance to get close.

The winged girl switches her fire sword for her ice sword, and swings it in crescent arcs right in front of the mansion's maid.

Sakuya yelps in pain when one of those crescents freezes her feet and forces her to the ground. Her spell card is canceled, but Rika continues her attack by taking her fire sword on her free hand, and hopping away.

"WAIT!" Meiling's scream stops the winged maid from performing the rest of her spell, and now the peasant maid watches as the gate guard shakes her coworker up.

"Sakuya-san, that's enough! Please, trust me, that Ail is-AUGH!"

The silver haired maid stabs the gate guard's stomach with the knife intended for Rika, and while the redhead doubles over, she coldly says "you put the mistress in danger _again_ and dare to make demands to me? You are lucky Miss Remilia still values your life!"

The winged maid is about to finish her spell card performance when she suddenly lowers her guard, sheathes both swords, and dusts her hands while casually saying "well, that works."

Meiling has gotten behind the trapped maid and has locked her neck in a sleeper hold, though only tight enough to prevent her from moving too much.

With the violent maid secure, the redhead guard says "I'm sorry Sakuya, but you are out of control. Now calm down before I have to get aggressive!"

Now that everything has settled down, Rika takes notice of the damage she's given, **and** taken.

Sakuya's apron has been cut lose, and hangs only by the straps around her shoulders, there's a burn-hole on the right side of her chest, and the backside of her skirt is in tatters, not to mention her headdress is a little singed.

The winged girl herself has a new, unwanted cleavage cut, and the bottom of her kimono looks like Swiss cheese; and although the cuts and burns on their skins are light, she knows darn well those will start itching and stinging in the morning.

Rika sighs and smacks her hands on her thighs in frustration, then looks at Meiling, and says "out of all the times to forget the ointment, today _HAD_ to be the day I needed it the most."

* * *

While the maids fight outside, Ail and Reimu move fast and silently through the second floor halls and corridors of the mansion.

Their aim is to find the study, where Remilia usually is after waking up in the late noon. As they walk through one of the outer corridors, Anilan looks out of the lone window there, and notices the sun is setting.

After a gasp of surprise, he mutters "time is flowing here; but why? Everywhere else time is stuck."

"What's the matter, sweeti-er..." Before she fixes her mistake, the boy answers as if he didn't hear her say anything. "It's nothing. Come on, we need to find her while she's in a good mood."

"**SAAAKUUUYAAAA!**"

That horrible bellow indicates that, yet again, Ail's assumptions are wrong, and Remilia is already in a bad mood.

Reimu pats his shoulder twice with pity and after a sigh she says "come on; let's get this over with quickly."

The boy chuckles nervously [_Oh, this is going to be GOOD! Oh, and take care of Reimu. If that bat-bitch touches her, then I'll come get YOU, got that?_], sighs anxiously, then mumbles incoherently while moving toward the source of the furious scream.

Since they no longer need to sneak around, they fly to the door of the mansion's family room; where the voice came from; and reach it in a relatively short amount of time.

"Alright, here we go," anxiously whispers the dense one while shaking off his nervousness.

He places his hand on the door, pushes it slightly, then Remilia furiously says "you better have a very good damned reason to intrude in my mansion, Inmodo."

The boy's face turns paler than Youmu's skin when he hears that angry voice naming him. He hates it when Remilia is angry at him, and for many good reasons; the main one being his health.

Reimu helps him open the door the rest of the way, and after a shaky bow of thanks, he turns his gaze to the light-blue haired vampire on the tall, lonely red chair in the center of the room, gulps, then meekly says "I-I-I come to seek an audience with-with you."

Flandre peeks her curious face from behind the red throne, while Remilia stares at the frightened boy before her with a very unamused face, and then coldly asks "who. the hell. are you?"

Her anger has subsided slightly. The boy believes now is the time to talk, and with a bit more confidence he stands under the doorway, bows stiffly, and says "please forgive me because this will be VERY confusing, but I am an Ail that comes from another Gensokyo, and I come to you now because I believe you hold the answer for my return home."

There is an uncomfortable pause, and then Flandre suddenly giggles and says "hey sis, he's an idiot again. Just listen to that heart of his. He doesn't even know what he's saying."

The elder scarlet sound less than amused, and waves her free hand in front of her sister, and says "mmm, yes, I believe you are right, dear sister. This is kind of curious though. If this shaky Ail is here, where is the _other_ one? Maybe he's just trying to trick us into lowering our guards."

Both Ail and Reimu remain silent while looking at each other with the corner of their eyes, both wondering if the other has an answer for the vampire's question, but neither says a word, and merely return their eyes to their host, and grin.

The blue haired girl's eyes flare up as a grin breaks the cold look she had adopted before, and hissing almost too happily, she says "oh, this is very amusing. He's in there, isn't he? He's still inside of you, cursing your guts for trapping him so easily when you yourself are so pathetic."

[_HA! The bitch got THAT right! Say, kid, why don't you just die and let me have my body back now, huh? No? Enjoy your game with the vampires~!_]

Ail's response is a nervous chuckle and sweat beads rolling down his forehead, which causes both Remilia and Flandre to hiss and slowly move closer; their faces showing a vicious intent.

"Hey, onee-chan, you thinking what I'm thinking?" hisses the blonde girl.

The blue haired vampire stands, stretches her wings, her eyes glow with intensity, then she hisses back "we kill this pathetic bastard that's trying to lie to us with such ridiculous stories? Yes, I'm thinking just that. You may even have what's left of him afterward."

Reimu draws her silver gohei and a few charms, gets in front of the boy, and says "no choice. We'll have to fight them! Ugh, and they're together! This is going to be a pain in the ass!"

The elder Scarlet appears to regain some composure when looking at the ex-shrine maiden, holds her sister back with one hand, and sounding genuinely concerned, she says "if you get in the way, I'm afraid I won't hold back."

"Reimu, don-!" Ail tries to complain, but the black haired girl covers his mouth without looking back, and bravely says "it's just like she said. My husband is in there. I have to protect him."

[_Gods damn it, you stupid idiot! Don't let her get **involved!**_]

The blue haired vampire sighs, shakes her head while holding her forehead with her right hand, and says "I understand. You really are lying to me. You wanted to kill me too. Then today, you BOTH meet your fate at the hands of Remilia Scarlet!"

Flandre clears her throat to let her older sister remember her presence, then the blue haired vampire rolls her eyes, sighs and says "_and_ Flandre Scarlet."

* * *

Flandre zips toward the duo and lands an explosive punch on the floor in front of their feet, forcing them up to the air.

Remilia follows up with relentless claw attacks on the boy's torso, though to her irritation, she's only scratching his clothes, and is unable to reach his skin for some inexplicable reason.

She feels her wings and spine stiffening and freezing up on her when she feels paper sticking to her, then Reimu dive-kicks her and the blonde to the ground, where she mercilessly stomps them hard, making the floor crack beneath them.

Reimu rushes to the boy, and after making sure Ail is alright, she takes a couple of amulets on hand and says "you won't hurt us, Remilia, so just settle down and listen to what he has to say."

The elder Scarlet kicks her sister back to the air and grunts "like hell I will!" then runs away from the black haired girl; Anilan running after her.

The younger vampire throws her fists in a tantrum and exclaims "that hurt, Reimu-sis! I'll make you sorry for that!", and then she flies straight toward the human, materializing her wavy black rod in front of her chest.

On the other side of the room, Remilia throws small scarlet spears at Ail, who repeatedly reflects them back to her with violet colored barriers activated at very precise moments.

After the last one cuts the upper side of her wing, she stops for a moment and demands "grow some balls and fight back, you coward!"

He glowers back at her and shouts "you idiot, I didn't come here to fight with you! I just wanted to ask-"

"Ail, why aren't you using your gaps!?" interrupts Reimu while parrying Flandre's rod with her silver gohei. She punches the vampire in the face, and adds "you're going to get killed if you keep playing around like that!"

Anilan jumps and rolls to the left to avoid a thick concentration of bullets, gets behind a comfortable looking single's couch, and shouts "I can't! If I open gaps while in this world, I could cause some _serious_ trouble for myself, and everyone in here."

Remilia grabs him by the back of his shirt, easily lifts him to the air, forces him to look at her face, and with a viciously vile grin she says "funny. If you haven't noticed, you're in _serious trouble_ already."

The vampire does what she does best and bites him on the neck, manages to suck some blood from him, but he thinks quickly and punches her face with his right hand, activating his bracelet at just the right moment to flash her face, blinding her and earning his release; along with her shriek on his ear.

He shoots her with some water bullets to confuse her while she's blinded, then shoots larger water bullets at Flandre just before the blonde stabs Reimu on the back with her rod.

The peasant girl quickly flies down to the boy and plants a kiss on his lips, then stops when she realizes what she's doing, looks away, then says "um, th-that was... um, thanks for saving... me."

[_YOU SON OF A BITCH! I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL YOU SO MUCH, YOU'LL DIE AFTER YOU'RE DEAD!_]

The dense one's face turns beet red with the mixture of embarrassment and fright, and whimpers "he's mad..." then the ex-shrine maiden takes his hand and pulls him toward the exit, snapping him out of his shock.

The Scarlet sisters now stand side by side right in front of the throne, and both hold the same spell card as they simultaneously declare "**Scarlet Gensokyo**"

Outside the room, it is so quiet and peaceful, none of the fairy maids in the area would ever imagine there's a fight going on at the other side of the door, but that quickly changes when said door opens with a blast.

The boy and the girl burst through the blasted door and continue running down the hall, then they are quickly followed by fast red bullets that are surrounded by a scarlet mist.

As they run down the hall and head towards the foyer, Reimu shouts "so, what now!? I can't see another solution here other than fighting back!"

Ail doesn't know what to answer, and merely keeps running while looking outside. That's when he realizes that what little bit of sun that was left when they entered the mansion is now gone.

Fear takes him when he realizes the mess they are all in, so after gulping his heart back down to his chest, she says "I think you're right. We'll have to fight back, or get killed."

The duo looks back at the insane concentration of red bullets that looks like a giant snake with a body made out of pimples, and after gulping down his fast-beating heart again, the boy shouts "we need to take this outside or we're going to get killed either way!"

Just as they see the exit to the foyer, Flandre appears in front of them with a bloodthirsty smile on her face, and hisses "time to break the unwanted rats!"

Outside the mansion, Rika puts on her restored brown kimono, secures the matching strap around her waist, and then says "they've taken long enough. I'm going in-WHAT IN THE WORLD ARE YOU DOING!?"

As she speaks, she turns to face Meiling, and notices said gate guard is still holding the tattered Sakuya in a sleeper hold, and what's worst, the maid looks a bit bluish.

The Chinese-themed girl looks quizzically at the peasant maid, who desperately kneels in front of her and tries to pull the chief maid free while anxiously saying "let her go! Let her go now, or you're going to kill her!"

Meiling gasps and instinctively releases the limp human girl, and lets her drop on the floor.

When she sees that happen, she starts to hyperventilate, her eyes shiver, making her whole world seem like it's shaking all around her, and then she anxiously whispers "Sakuya! Sakuya, no! I killed her! Oh no, I'm so sorry; I didn't want to kill her! **Please forgive me!**"

Rika jumps on the gate guard's front and embraces her tightly while softly saying "listen to me; she is not dead! She just needs to recover. You didn't kill her, so calm down; don't despair."

After saying this, the angelic maid continues to hold the guard girl, even after they both end on their knees, while thinking "_her mental state is very fragile and it's only getting worst. I need to find a way to ease her up before-_"

The wall above the door of the mansion's foyer explodes so violently, chunks of it fly all over the place after Reimu and Ail are forced through it and sent flying backwards toward the outside of the gate.

The redhead instinctively covers Sakuya's body, saving her for the largest chunk of the wooden wall, while the winged maid cuts it into pieces before running to aid her mistress and the dense boy.

"My lady," she says with anxious breath. She kneels besides the black haired girl and helps her up, when everyone suddenly looks to the mansion as Remilia shrieks with rage.

The vampire holds the limp maid in a hug while screaming, suddenly punches Meiling on the face, pushing her away from her precious maid, then glares with glowing eyes at the boy, bares her teeth, and foams at the mouth as she snarls.

She places the silver haired girl's body on the grass as Flandre whimpers for the loss of the maid, points her claws at the dense boy, and says "you caused this. You are the cause of **_all_** of this."

Rika tries to explain that Sakuya is still alive at the same time as Ail tries to voice his defense, but Remilia roars too loud for them to compete, takes to the air as her scarlet aura envelops a wide range around her, then shouts "NO MORE PITY GAMES, AIL! YOU! WILL! DIEEEEEE!"

As her scream echoes through the air, the scarlet aura around her picks itself up and gathers on her raised right hand, forming into a giant Spear of the Gungnir; one that blatantly breaks the spell card rules.

* * *

Remilia throws a small spear straight at Kimi's face. The shadow girl catches it with her bare hands, ignores the burn while she holds it, then tosses it aside and says "oh, sure, blame it all on the shadow dragon!"

The vampire mistress prepares another small spear as she angrily asks "and who else broke my walls using my little sister's head like a battering ram!?"

"**IT WAS THE CAT!**" simultaneously shout Kimi and Flandre, the latter appearing from behind one of Remilia's many self-portraits.

The blue haired vampire stops her attacks and her face relaxes when she's told of the cat yet again.

Slowly, her flat lips curl up into a smile when she imagines the tiny black cat with three tails running on its hind legs, while somehow holding Flandre with its front paws above its head, and ramming her head through seven solid walls.

She starts flapping her wings when she breaks into a fit of laughter, and holds her sides as she falls down to the floor while repeatedly calling her sister _'a weak human baby_'.

The blonde vampire's face turns red and steam puffs out her ears as she throws her fists down to her thighs, then veins start pulsating all over her forehead, neck and fists when she sees her older sister rolling around on the ground and laughing even harder.

Kimi clicks her tongue then says "let's get the bitch." then Flandre summons her bent black rod while glaring at her sister, grins sinisterly, and grumbles "you hold her while I kick the **bitch** out of her!"

The elder Scarlet picks herself off the ground, ending her laughter, cracking her knuckles and grinning viciously towards her sister and the dragon girl before saying "what was that? Kick the _bitch_ out of whom? I think I'll have to punish this potty mouth again."

The three girls eye each other carefully; not one makes a single move as they mentally prepare to attack, and then Flandre's charge and roar initiates the attack, starting with Remilia's spears, and Kimi's fireballs exploding in front of the blonde.

Sakuya, Meiling and Patchouli stand under the archway to the foyer's ground floor (left side), away from the battle.

The gate guard sighs and asks "Sakuya, shouldn't we stop them? If they get serious, there won't be a mansion to save, you know."

The purple-themed magician smiles subtly, like only she knows how, and softly says "well, if you want to get in between those three, then please, go ahead and entertain us."

Kimi screams, several explosions follow after, Remilia blubbers when she tries to roar, then Meiling chuckles nervously and says "haha; no, I guess it's better to just clean up afterward, right Miss Sakuya?"

The maid continues looking toward the battle, seemingly lost inside her own mind, when she suddenly gags as though out of breath and drops on the ground where she holds her neck before passing out.

"Sakuya?" meekly calls the redhead, then the room becomes quiet, and now the vampire mistress is picking up her chief maid from the floor.

She holds the silver haired girl like a princess, and very coldly says "Patchouli, Kimi, take care of the mansion. Meiling, Flandre, come with me to Sakuya's room."

"Onee-chan, what happened to her?" worriedly asks the young blonde vampire, to which her older sister replies "I don't know, but I feel like I want to kill Reimu and Ail for this."

The gate guard suddenly grips her chest, tears start to flow out of her eyes, then she suddenly sobs "S-Sakuya is dead? M-my... fault? Wait, wha-what am I saying?"

Flandre quickly holds Meiling, thinking her older sister is going to do something to her for saying such things, but when that doesn't happen, she feels confident enough to ask "what's going on?"

Remilia turns around, revealing her eyes glowing in a manner that looks like they have a scarlet mist in them. She is suppressing her rage as she tries to think on the events that are happening, and manages to calmly say "Kimi, Patchouli, seal the mansion. Nobody in or out until I give the word! Dreamed fates are trying to invade our own. That's all I can say."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Hakurei Shrine, Rika sits on her knees in front of the kotatsu with her eyes closed.

She sees a white and black world being destroyed, and a very familiar human-like silhouette being shred to pieces along with the world.

She opens her eyes and looks around, wondering when she nodded off, and then closes her eyes again while she stretches her arms and wings and moans contently. "Ah~ I guess some relaxation time is nice every once in a while."

When she opens her eyes again, she scowls at the sight of Chiaki standing on the table, and sternly says "sweetie, we talked about this just an hour ago. Don't stand on the table!"

The vixen youkai hops off the table while retaining a somewhat distressed look she utterly fails at hiding, then says "um, Miss Rika ma'am. That girly ye hang around with; she's actin' odd."

The angelic maid gets excited and is about to mention Tenshi, when all of a sudden her excitement becomes fury, and feels the need for senseless fighting, just to vent out that strange rage.

She calms herself down, though can feel that urge to attack burning inside her heart, and then she gasps when she looks outside, and that urge, though merely diminished, is replaced by dread and anxiety.

Reimu falls on her knees in front of the open doors, crying while holding her chest and wondering why she is so depressed to the point of wanting to take her own life away.

She lifts her head to her maid, revealing her puffy red eyes burning with incessant tears, and cries "Ri-Rika! What *sniff* is happening? Thinking... about Ail... hurts my chest. P-please make it stop!"

The angelic maid suddenly feels the urge to find and thrash Ail, but she manages to suppress this feeling in order to tend to her mistress.

At the farthest corner of the kitchen, Chiaki, with Suzaku on her shoulder, watches as Rika picks Reimu off the floor and assists her in walking to her room.

After they are gone, the vixen looks to the bird, and asks "so ya have any idea 'bout what the fuck just happen 'ere?"

The vermillion bird bucks sadly, and just continues to look to the rooms corridor.

* * *

At the same time, at Higan, inside Shikieiki's courtroom, the Yama of Paradise frantically searches her stand, her seat, the floors, and even the two smaller stands in front of her own.

She's desperate and more anxious than usual. Whatever she is looking for has her stress levels higher than the norm.

"Where is it!?" she shouts to the darkness. She looks around the whole courtroom one last time, takes a deep breath, then calls "Komachiiiiii! Komachi, I need you here right now! ...Komachiiiiii!"

Three seconds later, a girl with pinkish red hair tied into two ponytails with red hair beads, red eyes, who wears a white shirt under a blue vest, a blue skirt, an obi belt with a large coin tied to it, and carries a large scythe with a wisp-like end, appears inside the room's massive double doors with a bored expression, and asks "yo, Eiki-sama, what's the-?"

She notices her boss' stress is making said girl shed some tears, and gasps at the sight and changes her question. "Whoa! Eiki-sama, what happened? What's got you this upset!?"

The yama takes a deep breath to relax, and manage to calmly say "Komachi, listen carefully. I need to find a round device with a round button on its center. It's somewhat transparent, and is glowing either green or red at the moment. P-please help me find it."

"A _device_?" asks the voluptuous shinigami with calm curiosity while looking around the somewhat unorganized courtroom. "That's kind of vague, but..."

She then scratches her head as she comments "phew. It seems you turned this place around real good. Any idea where it might be now? When did you last see it, Miss Shiki?"

The green haired girl jumps on her subordinate and holds her shirt's collar while anxiously saying "I don't know!" then jumps off the girl while still holding that collar and continues "last time I remember seeing it was when I went to visit Rika! After that..! Oh, how irresponsible of me!"

Shikieiki starts to moan as she releases her shinigami then walks away, and with her voice cracking, she says "Ail was under my care, and I completely forgot about him! I don't even know what the status on the world we created is! *Sob* I have been so irresponsible. Me, the Yama! Uuu~"

Komachi drops her scythe so that she may go and comfort her boss, but a flash from Eiki's stand catches her eyes, so instead she walks to the yama's chair.

Once there, the first thing she does is open the drawer to the right, and she immediately admires a beautiful white glow emanating from something that's under scattered stacks of paper.

She ooh-s and ah-s after removing those papers, picks up the source of the light, and says "wow, Shiki, this is beautiful. Can I have one?"

Shikieiki lifts her eyes to gaze upon the pure-white glowing device of hers being held by the ample-chested shinigami, who wears a very wide triumphant grin on her face.

The yama's first reaction is a instinctive gasp of relief as her smile grows, but then she notice's Komachi's face, frowns, and immediately asks "ugh, fine! What do you want?"

"Oh, nothing in particular," begins the shinigami. "Jus' a hundred years worth of braggin' rights, and at least two days of every week where I get to spend some time with you."

A shiver runs up and down the green haired girl's spine, and even though she looks as though she's about to burst out in anger, she sighs in defeat as she calms down, and says "alright. But if you're slacking off too much, expect an earful each of those days."

The pink haired girl twitches while faking a smile to hide her annoyance after realizing she could have had a better deal, but now it's too late as Eiki already possesses the round device, and is looking at it with great interest.

She gasps when she presses the button and nothing happens, and then says "no! What has happened here!? Everything is such a mess! I can't get him out even though he's succeeded! Gah! Someone's been interfering!"

She presses the button repeatedly, and even though the little device is glowing white, nothing happens.

Shikieiki explores the item a bit more, and to her eyes the dream world within is displayed as a three-dimensional map.

An anxious gasp escapes her while Komachi picks up her scythe, and before said shinigami can ask, the yama says "this is bad! The dream world has split itself into several segments, and each is running at such accelerated time lapses!"

"Is that bad?" asks the ignorant pink haired girl.

Eiki lifts her head to look at her subordinate in the eyes, and says "in a way, it is. To us he's been in there for days, yet to him it must have seemed like mere hours! Right now though, he's in one of the three segments in which time lapses are still flowing in par with ours."

"But that's not all," continues the anxious yama. "The weather patterns are off balance. In some segments it's a rainy summer, while in the next it's a dry autumn, and so on."

The voluptuous girl becomes worried, and asks "can we get him out of there?"

Shikieiki shakes her head, and says "as things are now, we can't. We'll need to go get him personally, but doing so is very risky. There must be another way. ...Maybe Yukari's device can-"

While looking inside, she takes full notice of the dream spirits zipping through accelerated segments, stopping at Eientei, then at the Moriya Shrine; the other two places where time flows normally; and whispers "intruders, inside the dream world!? Grrr! They must be the reason the world is so-!"

The door to the courtroom creaks open, both girls look to it with surprise, then the green haired yama asks "what the-; how in the world did _you_ get here!?"

* * *

Back in the dream world, Reimu grabs Ail and Rika and easily flies away from Remilia's massive spear, which leaves the grass and trees dead, and a massive burn mark on the outer gate wall.

The angelic maid soon breaks free of her mistress and goes around the raging vampire, while said girl quickly follows her attack with smaller spears headed straight for the dense boy.

The ex-shrine maiden prepares herself to deflect those attacks, but Ail manages to free himself from her grasp, and gets in front of her to use his own barriers to reflect them instead.

Remilia yelps when she suddenly finds herself dodging her own spears, and as soon as she's clear, she darkly says "new trick, huh? That won't save you. FLAN!"

The young blonde Scarlet's eyes appear unhinged, and her smile reflects madness as she aims her sights on Ail. "Heheheh! I'll make him say 'sorry' for breaking Sakuya~ AHAHAHAAA!"

Reimu pulls the boy back and prepares to intercept the blonde; however she disappears from sight along with her older sister.

Both vampires are moving so fast, only Rika can see where they are, so she takes her family sword on hand, activates her Soraogan, but then she remains perfectly still, and even a feather that just fell off her wing remains frozen behind her.

Ail notices the glitch just as Remilia appears out of nowhere and slams her fist on his back, pushing him far away from Reimu, who finds herself pushing her gohei against Flandre's Lavatein.

Seconds later, the area around Rika turns white, golden numbers that change at random cover the segment, then the trees, bushes and burn marks there, including the winged maid, disappear as if they had never been there.

The boy is now too busy blocking Remilia's spear with his own weapon of light to notice this, same as Reimu, who is having a hard time dodging the activated scarlet sword of the blonde's.

The blue haired vampire swings her spear with both hands and easily pushes her target against the wall of her mansion with great force, and feeling confident, she allows him to recover while saying "give it up, Ail. You are no match for me. True your little flukes saved you last time, but I'm not letting you off as easily THIS TIME!"

The dense boy chuckles as he moves his pained back away from the solid wall, turns his weapon of light into a staff, then looks up and says "if you would just listen to me, we wouldn't have to be doing this, but you're just so damned stubborn, Lady Remilia."

The vampire dives to the boy with the tip of her spear aimed at his face, but said boy swings his staff like a golf club, pushes her spear and her slightly up, and makes her crash face-first against the surprisingly sturdy wall that remains seemingly intact after the second hard impact on it.

She pushes herself off the wall and grabs the boy by his shoulders, flies high enough for them to see the crown of the moon rising from the horizon, and then she opens her mouth and launches her face at his healing neck.

Ail grunts after he manages to grab her forehead and chin, and pushes her face away from the still bloodied neck, fearing what may come.

She has the upper hand and he knows this well, but he still pushes against her even though he's failing, and now dread curses him as the chill of horror weakens his muscles.

"R-Remilia, please," he begs with a grunt. "I swear to you, I'm not NegaAil! I'm here... because I need to know how to get off this world! Y-you have to believe m-ARGH!"

She bites his neck as though she were a raging beast and shakes her head to rip a large gash on his skin, then tosses him to the ground and licks her lips, then starts moaning as the taste of his blood takes over her senses.

Once done enjoying the sweet taste, she watches as the weak boy struggles to fight the pain and get up, grins, then says "I'm not an idiot little man, and I _was_ starting to believe your lies, but what you made Meiling do to Sakuya is something you'll have to pay for."

Anilan looks up with a mixture of anger and shock, but before he can cut loose with deserving curses, the vampire girl continues "if you had only kept your nose out of my business, Ail. I treat my servants the way I damned well believe they ought to be treated, and not how others **_think_** I should!"

Ail stares at the small but imposing figure flapping her wings above him, scowls as he feels his anger rise, then says "I can't believe this. That's just a cheap excuse to treat Meiling the way you have. You're a real spoiled brat in this world, Remilia Scarlet!"

He reactivates his weapon, ignoring the pain on his bleeding neck, points at his attacker, and says "I'm going to beat you Remilia, and after I do, you will treat your family with the respect they deserve! However, if I lose-"

Remilia looks at him and a flat gaze that comes packed with a dark and cold feeling, and in a dangerously low tone, the girl clearly says "no deals this time, Ail."

A soft gasp escapes the dense one, and then the child-like vampire dives down to attack again.

* * *

Ail lifts his staff of light and increases its power to match Remilia's spear, and when the weapons clash, red and yellow sparks fly everywhere, leaving burn marks on the ground and walls.

The vampire's toothy grin widens when the boy's left foot slips slightly back, then darkly says "this is it, Anilan. It will take some effort, but I'll do my best to cook your head and serve it on a golden platter all by myself!"

"N-not today!" grunts the boy. He twirls sideways and lets her crash straight to the ground, then flies backward, away from the mansion, while shooting blue round bullets at the fiendish vampire.

When the bullets hit the ground around her, the Scarlet girl is already five feet above the ground and shooting homing scarlet bats at the hated boy.

Ail sighs and face palms, then quickly flies away from the scarlet bats that keep following him everywhere.

Remilia watches with an amused smile as the boy flies away in fear of her danmaku bats, and she flips a spell card right out of her wrist band, and then declares it only loud enough for herself to hear it. "Devil Sign, All the World in Nightmare!"

The vampire's body shatters into countless little black bats with scarlet wings, and the single one that remains flies a little higher and closer to the boy, then begins to shoot small fast moving scarlet danmaku knives and slow moving medium orbs that spread all around her.

By the time the boy realizes he's been trapped, the single remaining scarlet bat catches his leg, and burns him as it slowly flies through him, then disappears after its job is done, hindering him with terrible searing pain.

"Drop down and beg, Ail, and I might consider letting you live!"

The dense boy finds no other choice but to move clockwise along with the kunai, and quickly analyzes the situation.

Remilia's bat form makes her almost impossible to hit, her red bullets are packed with enough energy to knock out three tengu at once, and those same, slow moving orbs are going to hinder his movements very soon.

"_Dammit, she's leaving me with no other choice. I'll have to _[_You better hurry, kid! Flandre is playing with MY WIFE out there, and if she gets hurt because of you, well, pray Remilia gets you before I do!_]_ ...fight back._"

He manages to summon a spell card to his hand and focuses his energy on it, temporarily weakening his weapon of light, but his concentration soon fails him when Remilia screeches mixing her own voice along with her bat shriek.

Another little bat; this one a little lighter colored than the elder Scarlet; had crashed hard against the darker bat, and now Reimu rejoins Ail, sighs, then says "it was a little rough, but I think I'm wearing her down."

In the air, the new bat with Flandre's voice says "I'm sorry onee-sama, but she used that colorful spell card that cheats."

The two vampires reform their bodies in a spectacular display of gathering bats, and both look a little paler than before, though still seem as energetic as ever; even with the blonde's clothes cut in several spots.

"It's alright!" roars Remilia, before calmly saying "just help me kill this bastard so we can eat something nice today!"

"You're not killing anyone," bravely declares the dense boy. "You're going to stop this, and listen to reason!"

Reimu taps his head with her silver gohei and says "just declare your spell card Mister Speeches." then prepares another spell card of her own.

The Scarlet sisters hold a toothy grin as they both produce a spell card each, then the older sister says "with me, Flan!" then both declare their spells at the same time.

"Scarlet Sign, Scarlet Meister!"

"Taboo, Forbidden Games!"

Reimu and Ail watch in horror as red spinning lasers and scarlet bullets that look like a massive concentration of red eyes fly toward them, but instead of panicking, they grin as they lift their spell cards, and simultaneously declare them.

"Brightness, Overwhelming Heart!"

"Great Barrier, Hakurei Danmaku Barrier"

Their response for the attacks is one set of white rings that literally eat away the red orbs as they travel toward the vampires, and one white and a blue large square barriers that trap the danmaku between them, and sends all the bullets back, though at random directions.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Moriya Shrine, which enjoys a beautiful sunny spring morning, three blondes land in front of the lonely donation box there and start looking around as though lost and confused.

Kana turns around to face the shrine's donation box, stares at it as casually as anything, then says "empty box? This seems familiar, somehow."

Gengetsu grabs the gloved maid by the shoulder and grips her tight, and angrily says "no time for jokes! Ail needs us, and this world is making it harder to find him, so FOCUS on finding him!"

The girl sighs and says "fine, fine, keep your bloomers on. I was just making an observatio-KYAAH!"

A large hand made out of hardened soil reaches out of the ground and traps Kana in its grip, but the poltergeist easily breaks free with a few wisp shots, and then shouts "RUN AWAAAAYYYY!"

Mugetsu leads the runaway party through the increasing numbers of dirt hands that keep popping out of the ground.

She shoots straight bright blue orbs the size of her fists that break each hand with ease, Gengetsu surrounds herself with large white orbs while shooting medium-sized orbs in a wide arc in front of herself, and Kana surrounds herself with red thorny vines and bluish-white bats that circle her, while shooting fast white wisps straight forward.

With each hand they break; and so easily too; five more take their place, but that doesn't matter because they are reaching the exit of that segment.

Mugetsu points forward and cheers "CHAAAARGE! Show these hands they can't hold _US_ down!"

Right after saying this, her face flattens against an invisible barrier that separates them from exiting the shrine grounds, and falls in a daze straight on to a pair of hands that eagerly wait for her, and then quickly move back to the shrine with their catch on hand.

Kana and Gengetsu manage to take evasive actions and avoid the invisible wall, but doing so splits them apart from each other.

The poltergeist shouts "wait, don't leave me all alone!" while shooting her way through hands, unaware of the giant stone frog that surfing the ground with its mouth open behind her.

Gengetsu sees the stone creature and charges up her next attack until her energy starts glowing red, but just as she's about to release her energy, the frog swallows Kana and takes her below the ground.

The hands start gathering up on two separate spots, then merge together to form a pair of larger soil hands with longer forearms.

The winged blonde clicks her tongue, shouts "Gengetsu Rape Time," as a spell card appears in front of her chest, then said card explodes into a thick concentration of white bullets that make it look as though it's one giant ball of energy being concentrated around her.

Soon after, the orbs start flying around at random and as fast as Aya's warm-up flights, and easily destroy the two massive hands that were about to attempt splatting her like a mosquito.

She grins triumphantly after a job well done, cancels her spell while flicking the underside of her nose with her thumb, then confidently says "you don't mess with this dream demon, you pathetic little hands."

She twitches and chokes with fright when she feels an ominous presence behind her, and turns around shooting without waiting to see what's there.

Her bullets fly through the air and explode against the invisible barrier that forms a dome over the shrine ground, and feeling frightened and shivering as she looks around, she shouts "show yourself! Who the hell are you!? Why are you attacking us?"

Suwako appears behind her wearing her coldest smile, places her hands on the frightened dream spirit's shoulders, then sinisterly whispers "well, my dear, after how you destroyed this world, you should expect some form of punishment. Eheheh; Native God..."

A spell card appears to the girls' left as the blonde goddess slowly snakes her cheek against the terrified Gengetsu, then finishes "Kero-Chan Braves the Wind and Rain~"

She feels the goddess hands leave her shoulders, and thinks it is the perfect opportunity to fly away, but then she looks up to the sky at the ominous curse goddess smiling darkly at her, then the next thing she knows, she's drowning inside massive rain drops and crashing on the ground.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, the battle continues through the dark night.

The mansion's walls, outer walls and garden are full of blast marks, holes and bits of blood, but there are no signs of the battle stopping any time soon.

Meiling holds Sakuya, and rolls, jumps and does all in her power to keep the human's limp body from taking any unnecessary damage, and every attempt to enter the mansion is met with some form of blockage; be it by danmaku, or a mysterious force only Ail knows to be a glitch in the world.

The boy lands on top of the outer wall, shoots three rings to block out Remilia's kunai from above him, then shouts "dammit all Remilia, why won't you listen to me!?"

The vampire holds her spell for a moment to try and tackle the boy, but misses him when he flies away from her, and shouts "when I avenge Sakuya's death! Taking your life should set her spirit at ease!"

She flies after him and reactivates her spell, and shoots relentlessly at her target while trying to help Flandre with Reimu and shooting some kunai their way.

Anilan unleashes four more white rings to defeat the bullets flying his way, causing frustration to take over the Scarlet's rational thoughts.

She roars furiously after her attacks fail their intended purposes, and simply rushes toward Ail in a blind rage with her claws bare and ready to do massive damage to his chest, the source of the hated rings of light.

The boy grabs her arm before it reaches his chest, and is being pushed around the sky with ease while the vampire tries her best to reach that heart.

She bites his forearm in hopes that he will let her go, and although he screams in pain, he refuses to let go and unleashes three more rings.

Remilia screeches when the burning white light flies through her skin and bones, and finds herself fleeing the scene, but before the boy can even think of celebrating, or going after her, Flandre tackles him and holds him while saying "quit making onee-sama cry!"

She smashes him against the hard ground and makes him feel as though all his ribs and the bones on his left leg have shattered on impact, but lucky for him he's in a dream world, and nothing is actually broken.

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" cries Reimu, before she swoops out of nowhere and blasts the blonde away from her man.

She quickly kneels beside him and sighs incoherent words under her breath as she inspects his entire body with her hands, then sighs with relief when she feels he's still in one piece.

After wiping the cold sweat off her forehead, she says "sweetie, please, you have to be more careful. HYA!"

As Ail gets off the ground, Reimu is taken away by Flandre, who angrily growls "red and white sister is playing too rough!"

The boy ignores the horrible feeling of having his bones broken in order to chase after the girls, but he finds himself pushing Remilia's fully activated Spear of the Gungnir with his weapon of light matching said scarlet spear.

He looks at his weapon of light with curiosity, wondering when did he activate it, and whispers "what? When did I-?"

Remilia easily grabs the collar of his neck while pushing his weapon away from herself, then smiles while whispering "Ail, I know who you are, I know you don't belong here; I always have; but you came to the wrong place to ask for help!"

Anilan's face becomes filled with so much shock and confusion, even Reimu notices it in the dark, and wants nothing more than to be with him, however, she has to focus on batting away Flandre's Starbow Break bullets with her gohei, or she won't be able to be there for him at all.

The boy swallows his rage to ask simply "what? You knew? Then why-?"

Before he can voice his questions, the vampire sinks her claws in his skin, forcing him to grunt and shut up, smiles wider, chuckles as though making a joke, and then says "you fool, I can see your fates! He's in you. I can see him! He's desperate to come out and beat the shit out of me, but I can't let that happen. If I kill you, I kill him. It's as simple as that, Ail. It really is nothing against you, you see. It's all him. Once he's dead, Reimu will be free again, and Gensokyo can begin its recovery!"

She easily lifts him up and raises him above her head, sinks her claws deeper into his skin to force him to focus on trying to relieve himself of the pain, winds her spear back, and declares "she will be free; **_ALL_** of Gensokyo will be free again! Goodbye nice kid!"

There's that disturbing sound of impalement invading his ears, yet the pain is not there. He quickly realizes Remilia's face is turning blue as her eyes bulge as they become wider, and then she jumps far away, screaming her head off while holding her behind and moving around in circles either on land or on the sky.

Reimu stands behind from where Remilia was, with her gohei positioned where he guesses Remilia's butt was, and after a quick wince, he says "thank you Reimu... but wasn't that too much?"

The blue haired vampire starts yelping repeatedly while holding her butt tighter, cusses out loud, then the ex-shrine maiden shrugs and says "doesn't seem that way to me."

The boy and girl quickly hop backward once to avoid a blast, pause for a moment as they glare up, then hop back five more times to avoid more bullets, before taking flight.

Ail and Reimu prepare their respective weapons, while Flandre cackles madly and says "time to break the toys! Heheheh, you naughty dolls making onee-chan cry! I can't let you do that anymore! Mh-hmhmhm! AH-HAHAHAHAHAHAAA~"

Both their faces become pale at the sight of the maddening blonde, then the boy says "worst possible time for her to regress."

* * *

Reimu and Ail miraculously dodge the erratic bullet patterns coming from the cackling blonde vampire in front of them, who keeps getting closer, though slowly.

The boy notices she's getting too close for comfort, so he activates his weapon of light, this time making it into a sword-like weapon that looks as though it's made of yellow fire.

He swings the energy blade and clears a direct path to the blonde, and then the black haired girl grins and throws several charms straight at the vampire's face.

Flandre screams when the charms burn the skin on her face and forehead, but hasn't the time to dwell on that pain for long as Ail and Reimu fly next to her, both place a hand on her ribs, and then both hit her with pure energy.

The vampire yelps aloud, but is quickly silenced before her body thuds on the unforgiving ground.

After a moment passes by and neither vampire returns to attack, the dense boy and the powerhouse girl sigh with relief, then she grabs him in a powerful hug while declaring "we did it! We beat them!"

Red shard danmaku explode all over the two, making them hold on to each other out of shock while the bullets explode all over their bodies and tear holes on the girl's clothes; while they merely singe the boy's own.

Before either can recover, Flandre suddenly rises above them with a spell card on hand, and furiously roars "Secret Barrage, And Then There Will be None?"

They manage to split up in time to watch the blonde become a cloud of mist, then all around them a grid of blue bullets forms up, making up a large net that quickly moves diagonally upward.

Before they can study the bullets movements, red bullets appear above them and quickly rain down on them, while yellow bullets quickly rise from below them, and green bullets shaping another net that circles clockwise around them.

"Rei-" is all Ail manages to shout before the inevitable explosions begin. They are mercilessly blasted all over a darkened sky, bounced all around and forced to collide with other bullets before they can even recover their bearings.

The dream world, as if being cruel or helpful, glitches up, and now there is a bright full moon brightening the night, allowing Ail and Reimu to see better, but also increasing the strength of Flandre's bullets, as well as her speed.

Both manage to grab each other by the hands when being flung nearby, and make it so the next bullet that hit them are the red ones, which blast them right out of the spell's range and on to the ground below.

They lay face-down on the ground for what feels like five seconds, and then they begin to push themselves back on their feet when they hear Flandre's mad voice calling for them.

Reimu holds her left ribs while still on her left knee and winces in pain, but then she suddenly glowers and tosses a pack of talismans to the air, and focuses on finding, and hurting Flandre.

She suddenly gasps and rushes to her feet, runs to and tackles Ail away, then a large red spear flies through her chest, and she falls to the ground, followed by all her airborne talismans.

Anilan isn't sure of what he saw, but the cold beating on his heart keeps warning him and edging him to check things out, and regardless of the terrible pain on his legs, stomach, ribs and left eye, he gets off the ground and walks toward the black haired girl sprawled on the ground.

"Reimu?" he calls weakly, his voice cracking as the cold chill of anxiety and fear dries his mouth and hardens the beating of his heart the closer he gets to her.

She lies on the ground with her eyes wide open, and a stream of blood spilling from the black burn mark on her chest that goes all the way through to her back.

He drops on his knees after losing his strength on them, shoves her shoulder, a tear forces its way out of his left eye, and he calls with a cracked voice "Re-Reimu? Reimu, get up. Stop playing around and get up."

He shoves her shoulders harder, unable to accept she's dead, and loudly calls "Reimu! God damn it, Reimu! Get the hell up! **Get the _hell up!_ REIMU!**"

His last shove causes her body to flail hard, and she ends up looking straight at him with empty, lifeless eyes and a gaping mouth.

His tears start rushing out of his eyes as his heartbeats become hard and labored, then a loud sob escapes him, and he cries "dead! Sh-she's dead!"

"NOOOOOOOOOO!"

Remilia's screech ignites a burning rage in the boy's very chest, and without even realizing it, he stands up, lifts an open hand, and erects a red square barrier right in front of the vampire, making her crash hard against it.

He ignores her repeatedly calling for Reimu through that barrier, and gestures his hand into a fist, which causes the barrier to coil around her and trap her.

She furiously scratches the magical barrier with her claws while shouting "NOOOOO! That was for you! That was YOUR FATE! **WHY DID SHE TAKE _YOUR_ FATE AS HERS! ANSWER ME, YOU FUCKING SHIT!**"

Ail's eyes hide under a shadow as he stares silently at Reimu's murderer; he feels his heart beating faster, though harder, his entire body heats up as deep hatred and rage take him, and then he sighs and slowly calms down.

He coughs when his body relaxes, looks into the vampire's red eyes with his own golden ones; hurt, tired and burning with tears; and with a cracking voice he says "it's not resetting. Why isn't it RESETTING!?"

He gestures his hand as though throwing something and his barrier copies his gesture, throwing Remilia Scarlet far away from the scene to the dark sky.

Anilan returns to Reimu's side, starts to sob and cry anew when he looks into those lifeless, dull brown eyes, and with great pain he closes her eyes while crying "why isn't it resetting? Please reset! Please, don't kill her! Don't kill her!"

He covers his face and doubles over, sobs loudly before breaking down to cry again while in his mind, he hears his own voice speaking to him.

"_Ail, you have to calm down! Remember, this is a dream world, not the real thing! Reimu is alive and well, so don't let this illusion trick you! ...Anilan, you have to snap **out of it!**_"

He lets his arms flop to his sides on the ground, begins to shiver as he sobs one last time, and that's when he hears Flandre's insane cackle as she flies low to the ground and headed straight toward him.

The boy doesn't care anymore, and waits for that insane blonde vampire to come and destroy him; though he secretly hopes that if he dies, the world will reset, and Reimu will be alive again when he wakes up.

He grunts when he suddenly spasms, his right hand lifts itself, even though he isn't even moving it, and then he starts to scream.

His right arm feels as though it's engulfed in intense fire, it begins to glow gold, he tries to pull on it, but his strength wanes and feels he's at the mercy of whatever is happening to him now, and then his weapon of light ignites, taking the shape of a broad sword with flaming edges.

Flandre grunts when the blade of light breaks through her, blood stains the boy's hand as the hole on her chest presses itself against his fist due to the momentum of her speed, and somehow, he finds the strength to look into her dying eyes.

She smiles sweetly at him, gently grabs his forearm and pushes the hole on her chest away from his fist, then softly says "bad big brother, touching me there like that. Heheh, how naughty you are."

She breaks free from the weapon and falls to the ground, and then her body begins to dematerialize into bits of scarlet energy that scatter into the air.

Anilan finds himself feeling that same cold, hindering, and unbearably painful feeling of loss again, his tears renew, yet all he can manage to do is meekly whimper "Flan..." before he grunts, groans and bends over as though in horrible pain.

His arm turns red; the energy of his bracelet concentrates right in front of his fist, then it rapidly turns dark red.

It begins to absorb the energy floating off the unidentifiable remains of what used to be Flandre's body, and then makes a loud bang as it flies off to the sky in the form of a fireball.

Ail falls to the ground; regrettably conscious; and stares at the black rods with the colorful prisms that used to be Flandre's wings so close to the black hair that belonged to Reimu, and the vampire's white mop hat being swayed easily by the inexplicable draft; and then his tears begin anew, though is unable to do anything other than lay there and cry.

He can hear Rika's voice as she calls for her mistress Reimu, and feels despair when he is unable to comfort her, no matter how much he tries to move.

"YOU!" cries the hurt winged maid, picks him off the ground with ease, then stares angrily into his own distant eyes and realizes something.

She notices Flandre's wings next to Reimu's head, and then suddenly embraces the limp boy while crying and sobbing.

This embrace helps him react and he manages to place a comforting, yet cold hand on her head, but his burning tears return, making it impossible for him to see clearly.

"Please reset," he mutters as though in a trance, even though he's returning the winged maid's embrace and making it feel warm enough for her.

* * *

Meanwhile, the red energy roars louder as it grows in size and flies father and higher.

Remilia is returning to where Reimu's body is, screaming "NO! Reimu! I have to save Reimu! She's not dead! NOT DEAD YET! **SHE CAN'T BE!**"

The red energy forces the vampire to stop abruptly and shield herself with her wings when it shoots out bits of itself, then from it, a familiar cold and suave voice says "you killed her. You took away her right to bear a child, caused her immense pain for years; a pain _I_ tried to take away from her; and now, you went and killed her."

The red energy takes a human form and rapidly forms a new body for NegaAil, whose red eyes glow with raging hatred toward Remilia.

The girl glowers darkly at the boy, lifts her right hand and prepares another scarlet spear, and darkly says "so, you escaped that body. That is wonderful. I get to kill you and... wait."

She narrows her eyes as she studies the boy, her eyes appear to water, and then she hesitantly asks "why... why do I see Flandre's fate when I look at-?"

The answer comes to her quickly, but the evil boy; grinning because he knows that she knows; bluntly answers "well, you did take my Reimu's life. I think it's a fair trade, don't you think?"

She screams so loud, it feels as though the air around her is shaking along with her screeching voice.

Her hair seems to take a life of its own as scarlet flames crackle around her body, her intense spear grows on her hand, her eyes glow so bright they look as if they are glowing bullets inside a head, and NegaAil's reaction to this is to grin toothily and scoff.

He activates his own weapon, though his is made out of purple bolts that surround a scimitar of black energy, and shouts "we end this tonight, Remilia Scarlet! Only one of us walks out of here, and it's going to be me! I have to deal with that **weak** asshole after I kill _you_!"

The vampire roars to the air, and screams in a manner that her voice appears to echo. "I will kill you, Inmodo! FLANDRE! GIVE ME BACK MY SISTEEEERRRR!"

Both weapons clash in the sky, purple and scarlet sparks fly off in every direction, and the overpowered boy faces off against a raging vampire with a thirst for his blood.

While all of this happens in that segment of the world, back at the Human Village, the little doorless house crumbles, just as Marisa walks by.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Sanzu River's shore, Gengetsu, Mugetsu and Kana kneel before Suwako, Shikieiki, Komachi, and a fourth person behind the shinigami.

Their hands and ankles are tied by sacred ropes that sap them of their strength, while the three angry girls continue to glare at them.

Shikieiki sighs, then Kana cries "we're sorry!", and then the froggy goddess barks "SHUT IT!"

Mima appears from behind Komachi with a face equally furious as Eiki's, and says "your meddling ruined what was supposed to be an experience for the boy! Did it ever occur to you that _he_ entered that world willingly!?"

"Settle down," begins the blonde goddess while flapping her arm in the air; "ripping their heads can wait. Just send me back in there so I can go look for him and get him out."

Komachi's face becomes pained, while the Yama sighs with disappointment, then says "your dream self automatically returned to her shrine the moment you stepped out. I failed to foresee that from happening, but what's done is done."

She looks at her shinigami and the supposedly-evil spirit behind her, and darkly says "we could try going to Mugenkan, but doing so could prove very risky for his health; mental and physical."

"The gap youkai," comments Suwako as the answer hits her like a ton of bricks. "But what if she can't help? What then?"

Mima looks away to the distance as if lost in a deep thought, and then says "we'll worry about that matter later. Let's first focus on finding Mayohiga first. After that, we'll see what course of action we'll need to take."

Komachi takes a few steps closer to Mugetsu, bends down low enough for her cleavage to show and annoy the blonde greatly, holds the dream spirit's chin so as to keep her head up and looking between that cleavage and those red eyes, and then the shinigami says "as for you three; I'll be in charge of whatever punishment may befall you."

Shikieiki lets a venomous smile take her features as she says "bear in mind, that girl is far less forgiving than I."

The three dream blondes feel the need to look up at Komachi as she hangs her arms over her scythe's handle while resting it on her back, then shiver when the shinigami grins darkly at them.

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Kimi, Azzhara and Chiaki were created by Willie G.R.

Ail's spell card: "Brightness, Overwhelming Heart" was created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami and Suzaku were created by Snapshot2010

Rika's spell cards: "Wind Sign, Neppa Senpuujin (Wind Sign, Searing Gale);

And Fire and Water Sign, Embarco Endo no Zeppa Juujishou (Fire and Water Sign, Final Cross That Embraces the End), were created by Snapshot 2010

OCT 29 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Sorry for the delay, but I was enjoying Resident Evil 6 too much... and still am.**

**Oh, and a big thanks to one of my buddies down at the "Let's Danmaku" forums for helping me out with a bit of Shikieiki's and Komachi's part in the story :D! Really, I couldn't see the timelines thing working, until he suggested I changed it to days, instead of weeks.**

**That aside, I felt really bad for the deaths on this chapter, but the show must go on, and Ail HAS to get out of there, and the only way for that to happen is if things keep moving forward. I wonder if Yukari can do something. Maybe fix the resets? Anyways, I hope you have enjoyed this chapter, and hope to see you on the next one.**

* * *

Ran: Willie, you can't actually _SEE_ any of the readers. You only imagine you do!

Me: Oi, oi, let me enjoy something in life. Then again-

Satori: seriously, all you ever do is enjoy dreams, and never really work to make them real. You really suck at life.

Me: *Sniffle* Sh-shut up! I... L-leave me alone!"

Ran: *Sigh* Look, if you keep crying like a baby, girls won't take you seriously. I don't take you seriously. I can't.

Satori: Don't take him seriously. He speaks loads of crap, helps others by telling them what they should do, but when someone tries to help, he shrugs it off and goes to sleep to dream of girlfriends he'll never have if he keeps this up.

Me: *Is sleeping, dreaming of a big-boobed girlfriend that doesn't even exist.*

Satori: *Sigh* I really want to kill him... but I can't. Why can't I kill this wasted of space?

Ran: He's cute, easy to embarrass, even easier to tease, and he's a great listener.

Satori: There had to be _something_ good about him, I guess.

Me: *Mumbling* I'll get you for that, Satori.


	11. Chapter 11

Sorry for the long wait, folks. Hope you like the bit of extra effort I'm putting in my writing now.

Legend: {_i_} = Mima speaking to Ail's mind.

NOTE: Dark events and strong language ahead.

* * *

The moonlit sky is filled with the red and purple sparks that the two blurs explode with whenever they clash against each other while zipping around in the darkness.

Remilia and NegaAil clash once more in front of the clock tower, where they stop as they struggle for dominance.

During this stance the furious vampire asks "how did you do it? How did you take my sister's life and make it **yours**? We don't have SOULS to work like that!"

The boy grins, revealing a set of large fangs under his lips, and answers. "it is simple, Remilia. I succeeded where Agava failed. I took your sister's innocent spirit; and quite frankly, I did so without expending much effort."

They push each other apart with a mighty push from each, but instead of continuing the battle, they remain where they are, and so the boy continues. "You see, all I had to do was to gain Flandre's trust. After that I only had to visit her a few times until _it_ happened."

Remilia raises an eyebrow as the left side of her mouth twitches. She fears the answer, but still she asks "until _what_ happened, you wretched garbage!?"

NegaAil laughs as though asphyxiated, and then grins as though he's remembering a very good joke from a close friend, causing the blue haired girl to bark with rage.

He breathes in through his nose as his eyes water up, and chuckles one last time before saying "are you really that fucking stupid? I already told you the answer. I took her _innocence_ away, Scarlet. It was... disgusting."

His eyes swell with tears as the memory of him taking Flandre comes back into the front of his mind, yet he continues to smile while he speaks. "But I had no choice! I knew that one day I would challenge you to one final battle, and the only way I could win was by making Flandre mine, so that she could help me defeat you!"

He chuckles at the sight of Remilia's shocked face and gaping mouth, laughs hysterically when he sees the vampire's eyes turn glassy, and pointing his dark weapon at her face, he shouts "I made her PROMISE she would never tell you; I made her promise to always take your side, and all for this; the power to kill Remilia Scarlet!"

His sword turns scarlet, though retains a thin black center, while the vampire continues to stare shock-struck at him.

She slowly closes her mouth and narrows her eyes; her face darkens, her wings stretch unnaturally, her own fangs grow until each cuts a hole on her lips, and then she clenches her fists tight enough to spilt her spear's fiery handle in two and cut her own hands with her claws as she screams with rage to the sky.

Her rage and her hatred increase her unnatural power to the point of making the earth itself rumble beneath her, and now NegaAil's taunting smile becomes a frightened frown at the sight of this.

Her spear is now clashing against his sword. Using only one hand, she's forcing the boy to use both of his to hold her back. She wastes no time and claws his shoulder, then backs away.

Before he can nurse his arm, she's behind him and stabbing him on the back with the tip of her spear and ripping a new hole on his back with her bare claws.

NegaAil manages to turn around using his newfound brute strength, grips her neck with a single hand until it snaps in two, and then throws her to the ground and shouts "you fucking bitch, I have Flandre's strength added to my own! The least you can do now is **bow** to me and beg for a merciful death!"

The blue haired vampire stands up; even though her head is dangling from the skin of her neck; grabs her own head and pulls it up, and glances upward while growling as she adjusts her neck and snaps it back in place.

She takes flight, reignites her giant spear, and shouts "I'll rip your arms, your legs, your groin, and _then_ I'll shred your heart; **slowly**!"

Their weapons clash once more; their faces are an inch away from touching. They glare at each other and mouth insults while pushing with all their might, and then Remilia surprises the vile boy by stretching her neck and viciously biting his.

The boy screams with pain, but he manages to grip one of her wings and squeeze it until it snaps, then stabs her in the chest with his sword while she's flinching.

Her eyes almost burst as she coughs out some blood, but then she suddenly roars; as if her strength has increased; grabs the boy by the hair and spins him around, forcing him to shut off his own sword, then throws him straight at the clock's face, where he painfully crashes through its face. By the sound of things, he also crashes against the gears within.

A few quiet seconds pass, then the vile boy roars as he breaks back out of the clock tower with a newly healed neck; blasting a new hole on the large clock's face on his way out; and when in front of the hated girl he screams "why aren't you dead!? I hit your fucking heart! YOUR GOD DAMNED HEART!"

Remilia chuckles sinisterly as she licks the blood of her own wound dripping down her right thumb, and while smiling darkly she says "you are still the stupid little boy scared witless of my powers, Anilan Inmodo Leuch. You are using darkness against me."

She spreads her arms and wings as she lifts herself higher up the sky without the need to flap those leathery wings, and continues "**I am darkness, you whelp!** I am Remilia Scarlet, the Scarlet Devil; and you are a mere nuisance to me!"

They both roar like wild beasts as they rush toward each other again. They summon their weapons at the last second and clash once more, sending more intense sparks flying all over the skies that burn everything they touch.

Remilia scratches his right cheek, NegaAil retaliates with a punch to her nose, and then both back away, produce a spell card, and declare them at the same time.

"Torrential Waves!"

"Hell Sign, Mountain of a Thousand Needles!"

* * *

Meanwhile, down on the ground, Ail and Rika finish burying Reimu's body and Flandre's wings, leaving the vampire's white hat on top of the small mound of dirt, and the human's red ribbon tied around the silver gohei, which is stabbed on the mound that belongs to Reimu.

The winged maid swipes the sweat off her forehead, as well as the burning tears from her eyes with her forearm, and then looks at the silent, kneeling boy who seems to want to be swallowed up by the earth.

Anilan remains on his knees looking at his hands as though they hold some sort of answer, then mutters to himself "it's not resetting."

"She wouldn't want you to be moping around like that." The hurt boy looks up at the winged girl that now stands to his right, tries to speak, but ends up gagging and closing his mouth again.

Before he tries again, Rika bends her knees and places a comforting hand on his shoulder, and then asks "Ail, what are you talking about? What is this about 'resets'?"

The boy gulps and she helps him relax by rubbing his back for a bit, then he finally speaks, though is obviously devastated because his cracking voice has almost no strength behind his words.

"Rika, I told you, I'm not from this world, and this world is _supposed_ to reset whenever someone dies... but she died, Rika. She died to save me, and she's not... she's not coming back! It's not resetting!"

He starts to sob uncontrollably yet again, but he manages to stop after a quick snort, and then says "I told you this world is a dream, and that everything happening here is not supposed to be real, but if that's true, then why; why does it hurt so much!?"

The peasant maid gives him a light embrace for support while he continues "and then Flan. Why did I do that? I couldn't lower my arm; no matter how hard I tried; and then she died because of my weakness! It's not fair. It's just not **fair!**"

Again he starts to sob, and the angelic girl wants to say some words of comfort, yet finds herself unable to express anything into words, so just embraces him with her arms and wings right after activating her Soraogan limit, and joins him with her own soft sobs.

A blast comes from the mansion's clock tower, and Ail and Rika stop sobbing to stand and glare at NegaAil as he and Remilia fight.

Anilan's sorrow wanes; he can feel his blood coming to a boil in a matter of seconds; his tears dry up, and all his senses seem to augment.

He activates his Yozoragan limit out of spite, and darkly mutters "this is all his damned fault! If he hadn't gone around turning friends into enemies, none of this would have happen. **I HATE HIM!**"

His weapon of light activates with a red aura around it. He intends to kill that alternate version of himself with all his hatred, but Rika Onkamikami decides to step in.

She gets in his way and makes sure his night-sky eyes meet with her day-sky ones, and slowly but surely he begins to calm down while looking at those clouds drifting lazily in her eyes.

Finally, after his weapon turns gold once more, she places her hands on his shoulders and says "Ail, I don't have much time, so listen to me. Yes, you may be right about that man, and yes, you have all the right in the world to want to kill him; as much as I do too."

She gently forces him to sit down on the ground before continuing "but you can't fight him with hatred, or else you will be the same as him. Yes, you will kill him, but doing so with that much hatred will only cause you the same pain he feels every day of his pathetic life."

She places her hand on his head and watches as his ethereal dragon wings take a lighter color, then whispers "that's it, calm down. If you lose your head now, all of that which you have been through here will become undone, and you'll have to try this all over again."

His eyes liven up and he looks at her curiously, then she lifts her hand to signal him to stop and says "don't ask. I don't really know where that came from."

He chuckles as he feels himself relax and accept what has happened; though that does not mean the memory of the recent deaths doesn't hurt him; and again looks curiously at the winged girl and asks "wait, Rika, what did you mean just now; about 'not having much time'?"

The girl flinches and quickly backs off, sits on the ground in front of the boy with her legs bending elegantly under her skirt, then looks to Reimu's grave and says "she knew what would happen, Ail. She knew, and yet she stayed to protect you; no, to protect _him_."

Their gaze turns to the fighting boy in the sky for a moment, but quickly returns to each other, and the girl continues "before we set out, though, she gave me specific orders."

She can see the vivid image of Reimu in her mind as said girl strictly says "...do you understand me? He has too many enemies, and there is a high probability that I will die protecting him, and when that happens I want you to help him if you can, then go straight to Bahva-Agra afterward; with Tenshi! And Rika Onkamikami, you incorrigible maid, you do as you are told!"

"No revenge, no moping and moaning because I'm gone. Tenshi will take care of you. She promised!"

There is great pain in the girl's eyes as she looks down to the ground while saying "I really tried arguing that point with her; to let me take her place; but she didn't want that. I think she just _wanted_ it all to end."

Ail remains looking down to the ground and uses his sadness to hide the cold fear he is feeling inside his heart.

It's become painfully obvious to him that he might have to fight both NegaAil AND Remilia on his own, but his desire to bring down that vile monster steels his resolve, so even with fear present, he'll stay and do what he must.

Rika can read his eyes perfectly and wishes she could stay and help him, but to her, Reimu's orders have always come first, and fighting NegaAil would go against her mandate; and Reimu's last orders will be followed without question.

She gets on to her feet and bends over to help the boy up on to his. He gladly accepts her hand and stands, and then the girl kisses him on the forehead, surprising him greatly.

She steps back and bows her head slightly, and says "so you understand. I cannot help him, for that would mean I would have to fight _you_, and I just can't do that either."

She grabs hold of her sapphire yin-yang necklace and pulls it out from under her shirt, closes her eyes as she takes flight, and remains hovering in place while saying "do what you can to get back home, big brother. And please forgive me for abandoning you at such time as this, but understand, I-"

He smiles at her, causing her to stop her speech, and says "I understand little sister. Honor her last request to you. I will do what I can here, and see if I can find a way to return home."

The dense boy bows his head slightly to Rika, and says "now go, and don't look back."

And so, with a heavy heart, the winged girl turns away from Ail as he turns to face the spells going off at the mansion, and Rika Onkamikami leaves to the Youkai Mountain, where she is to reach Heaven and never to return to the land of Gensokyo; a small fact she's keeping to herself so as not to burden the gentle fool's heart further.

Anilan pretends to ignore her as he continues to face Remilia and NegaAil. He activates his weapon of light with the form of a large golden scimitar similar to Momiji's in shape, then says to herself "Reimu, Flandre, give me the strength and wits to convince Remilia to side with me."

* * *

Up on the sky in front of the battered clock tower, large and numerous blue bullets clutter together and fly forward like raging rapids.

From the opposing side, numerous red shards and cursed knives bundle up and meet the raging waters, causing a powerful explosion of red and blue that momentarily illuminates the night sky.

This event repeats itself over and over again until the vile boy roars to the air, and shoots a bolt of black lightning that strikes and engulfs the next wave of raging water bullets.

Remilia smiles and coos when she sees this. Her spell rushes toward the tainted waters, easily breaks through the attack, and NegaAil can only gasp like an idiot just before Remilia's barrage punishes him mercilessly.

"Is that all you've got? Flandre was a hundred times the sport _you_ are, kid." The vampire's taunt works its magic and infuriates the vile boy into roaring like a beast and expending more power into his attack than needed.

The vampire's grin widens, but it suddenly drops just before the boy's fist connects with her face, cancelling her spell card and allowing the boy's spell to overwhelm her.

NegaAil is about to follow up his attack with his sword, but he gets a smiling Remilia holding said weapon with her bare hands after his swing, and before he can think of reacting, she spears her hand into his stomach, cancelling his spell. She grips whatever she can find within, then throws him straight at the sharp top of the tower.

Ignoring the horrible pain in his stomach, he arcs his body upward and misses the dangerous metal spike by an inch, grabs on to its side, and uses his momentum to spin around it and launch himself toward the blue haired vampire.

"WHY WON'T YOU DIEEEEEEEE!?"

He screams at the top of his lungs as he flies straight at her with a speared hand he's making sure to engulf only with scarlet magic.

Confident in her mastery of scarlet magic; as well as her knowledge on Flandre's own expertise on said kind of magic; the vampire girl drops her guard as she welcomes the attack. "This is your last mistake, Inmodo!"

NegaAil grins vilely, making Remilia question her own confidence, and then he suddenly disappears from her sight, and reappears with his left hand gripping her face.

He chuckles in a disturbing manner and says "did you forget _I_ merged Flandre's powers with my own!? Taste the magic, you annoying bitch!"

Her scream of pain echoes thought all the many separations in that dream Gensokyo until it reaches the Human Village and startles the people there. NegaAil's hand sizzles as steam rises from the vampire's very skin, and the desperate girl flaps her wings and claws his forearms in a futile attempt to escape, but the boy increases the magical output and laughs as her face burns.

Glee takes the vile boy's face, his red eyes glow as anticipation fills him, and with a vicious hiss he says "I will savor your agony, Scarlet. You will **_suffer_** for killing my Reimu."

He screams when Ail's scimitar of light cuts his hand clean off the wrist; denying him the vampire's life; but as pained as he is, he still blocks Ail's next attack with his own dark blade.

The dense boy swings downward with all his strength, but the vile monster of a boy easily parries his attack and opens his defenses. Anilan twirls right and grips his attacker's arm, elbows him on the nose, and then he turns his weapon around for the finishing backward-thrust.

NegaAil headbutts the back of the good boy's head, kicks his spine with his boot's talon, then thrusts his own blade downward at the boy's back.

Ail turns around, shoots a focused bullet at the vile one's face, then shoots three white laser beams at his opponent's stomach. The red eyed boy holds those lasers back with his bare hands, and hisses "how the fuck did you manage to harm me!?"

The dense one breathes in once and says "separate bodies, different rules!" Afterward, he launches himself toward his evil self, but Remilia rushes through him to try and skewer the evil one with her own spear.

Her pride and arrogance costs her dearly as NegaAil had already seen her. He easily grips that spear and spins the girl around, then tosses her against his good self, knocking them both under the dark trees, and thus losing his targets.

Just a minute after their fall, Remilia is on top of Ail's chest with her hands tightly wrapped around his neck while speaking through her teeth. "You fowl, shitty, fat-headed cockroach! I'll make you pay for Flan and Reimu, you hear me!? _PAY!_"

Ail gags when he tries to speak, but her grip is cutting all the air from going in or out of his system, so speech is impossible. To his luck, a most unusual distraction saves him from another death.

"Onee-chaaaaaaan; where are you? Come out, come out and plaaaayyyyy~!"

The blue haired vampire releases the boy and looks up to the sky with a lost face when she hears her sister's voice, but discovering the source of the voice disgust her as much as Ail.

NegaAil flies around with a smile on his face while flawlessly using Flandre's voice to try and lure Remilia out if hiding.

Before she launches herself to the sky to try and shred that monster to pieces, she feels the boy hold her by the hand, so she turns around to give him a disturbing warning glare.

She is met by a pair of resolute golden eyes, and Ail, knowing he can't push his luck, quickly says "please, Miss Remilia, allow me to help you in your fight against him!"

She snarls, pulls her hand away, and says "I don't need your help. I can waste that... _disgusting_ pervert by myself!"

"Remilia!" barks the boy to get her attention. "It's because of _him_ that Reimu and Flandre are dead! Please, let me join you!"

The vampire turns her head away once more, allowing him to see only half of her doubtful face, and then she stretches her wings and flaps them with all her might; as if trying to blow him away; while saying "do whatever the hell you want, Inmodo!"

Anilan smiles, furrows his brows, and then takes a spell card on hand as he sits up.

* * *

"Come and play with me, onee-chan~," hisses NegaAil; still using Flandre's voice in his attempt to lure his prey to him.

He looks around until his sights turn to the Youkai Mountain. He stops moving and narrows his eyes to help him expand his newfound sight, then hisses aggressively and with his normal suave voice he angrily says "why the hell are _they_ coming here!?"

He feels something blunt tackle his back before a series of explosions adds burning to his growing list of pains, and when he turns around to look at what had attacked him, he sees Ail with a half smile and his arms crossed under his chest while a large orange ring made of merged danmaku orbs circles clockwise all around him.

"What the hell?" asks the red eyed boy in confusion; to which the dense one smiles and says "Blast Sign, Healing Kaboom. Just thought it up."

A dark smile covers the vile one's face as he points his darkened sword at his alternate self, and says "you will pay, kid. You didn't take care of my Reimu, and for that I will make hell-certain to torture you until you beg for death. And don't even _think_ I'll comply!"

Anilan's own face darkens as he activates his weapon of light; again making it look like Momiji's scimitar; scowls at his evil self, and says "her death was your own fault. If you hadn't gone and turned **all of our _friends_** into enemies, _this_ would have never happened."

He tightens his grip on his weapon, making it shine a bit brighter, and says "I hate you! I want to erase you from existence; but that pleasure will have to be left for someone more deserving of that than me."

The foolish NegaAil launches himself to the dense boy in front of him, forgetting the danmaku ring and getting blasted by more than forty bullets on the face in just a few seconds, which add energy to Ail's own reserves.

Shortly after, the golden eyed boy swings his sword sideways, but is blocked by his other self's dark sword, then NegaAil kicks him below the waist, uppercuts the dense boy on the nose, and then swings his sword downward, damaging his opponent greatly and rocketing him back to the ground.

He's about to launch himself after the kind boy when Remilia roars and lashes at him with her claws while a large group of scarlet danmaku bats behind the vampire fly toward the vile boy.

NegaAil is quick enough to avoid a deep cut on the left side of his face, but some of the bats appear right in front of him without his notice and burn his skin, muscles and bones as they fly right through him; slowly.

Unsatisfied with the lack of screams, Remilia spears her right hand into his thigh, yet all she gets is a yelp, and now the boy's unnaturally strong grip threatens to break her wrist in half.

"Oh no you don't;" threatens the girl as she swipes another claw at his face, which he viciously bites and tries to rip off like a savage beast, regardless of the many bats flying through his body.

She forces her right hand free from his grip and focuses on pushing his forehead so as to free herself from that bite.

She then gasps with fright when she sees the vile monster has activated Reimu's Fantasy Seal spell without declaring it first; and even while having all those scarlet bats burning him all over.

"You damned wretch; how dare you use that spell?" is all she can say as those five orbs of red, blue, green, white and yellow rush toward her and blast her relentlessly.

She yells out loud when those orbs hit her with far more power than she remembers them to have, and that's when she feels one of the vile boy's hand wrap itself around her neck, while the other sinks right into her chest.

When she opens her eyes, she finds they are now flying just above her mansion's front garden, and realizes something that makes her gasp and try to break free, though pain stops her from moving too much.

The vile boy has her heart in his grip, and is squeezing it strongly enough to immobilize the vampire, and with a vile grin on his face he darkly whispers "well done Remilia; well done! Between that stupid idiot and your little sneak attack, you two have really drained me a great deal."

He chuckles softly as she whimpers sadly, then continues "mmm, I can sense the fear you are feeling. This is it; this is my revenge on you, you fucking bitch. Now I can die happily, knowing I have made you suffer during your last minutes as a semi-living being."

Tears form under her eyes when she hears the rustling of grass and bushes, and so she tries hard to fight the pain and move away, but she is unable to, and simply sobs and whimpers in an attempt to scream.

NegaAil puts his face next to her ear, hisses softly, and then darkly whispers "he can't see you or hear you, Remilia Scarlet. Right now, all Ail can see is me floating in mid-air, talking to myself like some madman. Thank you for showing me that trick with your scarlet danmaku. Those invisible bats gave me this wonderful idea of wrapping you with my own scarlet aura to make you invisible."

He chuckles in a manner that makes Remilia think of Yukari, and then he continues "he's coming. Don't worry, I figured out how to escape, so after he impales you with that wretched sword of his, you'll die, and I'll kick him down while he's moping over your death!"

And so it finally hits her; the terrible mistake she's made due to her pride and her desire for vengeance. That Ail, the one with the shiny golden sword was not just telling the truth, he holds the power to rid the world of _that_ vile boy, but also her.

Now she sees it; the fear in NegaAil's eyes; the fear of death. She decides he's not going to get off that easily, and so, with great effort from her part, she lifts her hands and sinks her claws into his shoulder, then wraps her legs around his knees to hold him in place.

"Wha-what are you doing!?" The pathetic fear in the boy's voice as he asks this earns a dark smile from Remilia, who coos softly, even though the pain on her chest makes her want to sob instead; and then she coldly whispers "fear. I love that f-from you."

She spits out a bit of blood, coughs softly, then says "tonight we both meet our fate, you cockroach."

"LET ME GO!" screams the terrified boy as he releases her heart and tries to push her off.

She's too pained and weakened from the attack on her heart to escape in time, and yet manages to hold the boy tightly while whispering "such a pathetic form of existence you are. You can torture others, threaten lives, even destroy them, but when your own is threatened, you become the shit you really are."

Ail is right below them; she can hear him take the jump toward them and says "goodbye Inmodo! My only regret is that I won't get to see you burn in hell!"

NegaAil struggles to break free, stammers when realizing he can't budge, then begs "please, Remilia, PLEASE! I DON'T WANT TO DIE LIKE THIS!"

The vile boy's scream echoes through the night, while a very confused and dense boy wonders why his target; having the knowledge of his approach; doesn't move or prepare to avoid the attack.

* * *

Ail wastes no time after he jumps. He winds his sword of light back, shouts "this is for **_EVERYTHING_** you've done to _all_ my friends!" and thrusts his weapon of light as far as he can into NegaAil's chest.

The dense one's eyes fill with confusion when he feels something else in front of the vile boy. The red eyed one coughs out blood, then the invisibility effect on Remilia lifts as soon as that tainted blood touches her face.

Anilan's heart stops for what feels to him like a minute, until he manages to gasp. At first he thinks the vampire will be just fine, that she'll just heal and throttle him afterwards, but then he realizes something; his weapon of light is going right through her heart, as well as NegaAil's own.

"No," cries the boy. "No, no, no, no, please no! **NOOOOO!**"

She shuts off his weapon and holds on to the girl as she falls, and gently descends with her while ignoring the body of his evil self as it falls to the unforgiving ground below, unwanted and left without assistance.

He doesn't care about that wretch. His focus is on Remilia, who jerks her body and flaps her wings with repeated convulsions.

"Remi! Remi, please, don't!" Hot tears well under his eyes, burning as they rush out of his lids and roll down his cheeks.

He places the girl on the ground near Reimu's grave, activates his Yozoragan blood limit in a hurry, places his ethereal wing on her cheek, and then, just like Flandre, her body begins to break into scarlet pieces that fly off to the sky.

"Remilia!" shouts the boy as he tries to hold her, accelerating the decomposition process when he does, and then he cries "no, please; don't die!"

He hops on his feet and looks up to the dark sky with futile hope, and then screams "**RESEEEEEEEEET! **Reset, you god damned world! REESEEEEEEEEET!"

He falls on his knees as the last pieces of Remilia vanish in the form of scarlet bits, and all that is left is her ribbon and her pink mop hat.

He picks them up, holds them tight against his chest as his blood limits shuts itself off, and now his loud sobs and crude sniffles echo through the disturbingly silent night.

Meanwhile, at the mansion's garden, NegaAil lives; though is too weak to even lift his head.

He can hear Ail screaming and crying, chuckles as though he's achieved victory, coughs out a blob of blood, then groans "t-take that... you fucking winged b-...bitch!"

Even after coughing out more blood, he laughs; he feels glee when he hears Ail crying out for Remilia, cackles even though his insides feel like they're just about to burst, then groans "yes! S-suffer, Ail! F-feel my... pain... for the loss of my... swe-argh! My sweet Reimu!"

He begins to laugh a little harder, the blood he was spitting stops, the wounds on his chest begin to heal, and then he gleefully says "hah! Take that, Remilia. I survived, and thanks to Flandre's sacrifice I will heal very soon!"

His laughter becomes a softer chuckle as his chest wound begins to close, then continues "and that Ail. Once I heal, I'm going to break his legs, then his fingers, then his arms, then his lower abdomen, and finally, after I hear enough of his pained screams, I'll-"

His head makes a very loud splat when a black slipper drops itself on his forehead.

Meiling looks down with disgust as she repeatedly stomps on the vile monster of a boy, and then suddenly snarls when she surrounds her arm with enough qi to illuminate the whole area.

On the mansion's wall behind her, Sakuya sits with her back against said wall while looking with surprise and utter disgust at NegaAil; or what's left of him.

The Chinese-clothed girl spears her hand down, using her qi to destroy the still-beating heart of the evil boy.

Her face gets stained with the flying blood, yet she remains looking cold as she retreats her hand from that body.

Shortly after hearing Ail's sobs, her gaze becomes as sweet and bright as usual; although filled with concern; and then looks to Sakuya, who waves her hand dismissively and says "go get him. I'll be alright."

The gate guard nods, and then quickly runs toward the voice of the sobbing boy while calling out for him.

* * *

Ail remains kneeling on the ground in the middle of the darkness of night between Reimu's and Flandre's graves, not caring if a youkai might come now and tear his head off, or that NegaAil himself comes and brutally murders him.

His right arm flops to the ground while he keeps holding Remilia's hat and ribbon against his chest with his left hand, his hair droops over his face as he lets his back bend forward slightly, and so he remains as he is.

The sobs eventually stop, his tears eventually dry up, but the terrible pain in his heart remains, ever stinging and burning his chest, reminding him how much his new blunders and mistakes have cost him and those he cared for.

"Dead," he mumbles to himself, and his tears begin anew.

{_Ail, can you hear me? Ail, please hold on a little long-er? Hey, Ail, are you listening? What's wrong? Anilan, what's going on, why is everything so blurry? Are you crying?_}

The boy remains unmoving, tears renew flowing and his sobs restart, and all Meiling dares to do is watch him from a short distance behind him.

{_Anilan Inmodo Leuch, answer me! ... UGH! Fine, I didn't want to do this, but..._}

The devastated boy coughs once, sobs when trying to recover his breath, but returns to the same position after recovering himself.

His tears and sob begin yet again when the memories of the death of Reimu, then Flandre, and finally Remilia, repeat themselves in front of his mind's eye, torturing his heart mercilessly and making him feel as though it's going to stop beating at any time, and then the memories stop.

{_Ail, you listen to me, and you **listen good!** You are inside a dream world; you friends are all fine and alive and being the bitches you know and love them to be! Don't let these dream girls' deaths consume you and **FOCUS**! You are strong; you can do it!_}

The boy chokes on a sob, but this seems to make him react and straighten his back. He turns his neck and torso left and looks at Meiling with broken, bloodshot eyes burning with incessant tears, then takes a soft, but deep breath.

He sighs the excess air out of his system and whispers "Meiling," and then he activates his weapon of light, though it's facing backward, making the gate guard ready herself to run toward him after threatening "don't you dare!"

{_NO! What the heck do you think you're doing, you idiot!?_}

He shivers as he raises his right hand and aims the rapier-shaped weapon to his heart, trembles violently, and then he thrust said weapon toward his chest, but then something tackles him hard and mercilessly, and everything goes black.

The redhead calls out to him and prepares to give chase, but then she looks back to Momiji and the masked Tenma, and asks "the tengu? What are you doing here?"

They all stare at each other with respect ever present in their eyes, then the gate guard and the two tengu bow their heads slightly. A silent understanding has been reached.

* * *

Ail wakes up to a beautiful sunny morning and quickly realizes he's on a very comfortable full-sized bed, inside one of the few windowed guest rooms in Remilia's mansion.

He looks down to his chest where he's resting his left hand and notices he is holding on to Remilia's hat, and what he now realizes is Reimu's ribbon.

Before that realization fully hits him, a girl from his right says "you wouldn't let go of those two, so I let you hold on to them; though it _was _ill-advised."

The boy gasps, stammers incoherently as he scrambles to the left side of the bed, hits the floor hard after falling, kicks himself to a corner, and then frightfully cries "ge-get away from me! I'm very dangerous!"

Aya watches him cowering from her backwards chair, and after waiting for long enough she smiles, snorts, then says "please; if you're dangerous, then I'm a virgin hatchling!"

The trembling dense one lifts his eyes over the bed, looks at the happy-looking crow tengu waving at him from that chair, then asks "Aya, is that really you?"

"You tell me," says the girl while pulling her chair back. "You're the one inside a dream. You probably made us all up, you little pervert. He-heh; tell me, what bra size you think I am?"

His face turns red with embarrassment when his thoughts suddenly turn to Shameimaru's figure, but he glowers at the girl and angrily says "l-like I would think about something like that! And don't call me a pervert!"

Another realization suddenly hits him, then he exclaims "wait, you look... happy." He jumps on the bed, though keeps close to the edge while holding Remilia's and Reimu's headgears tightly against his chest, and adds "j-just like the Aya I know and love."

It is now her turn to blush and look away out of embarrassment, but suddenly steels herself to look at the boy; straight to his golden eyes; and says "before I say more; Ail, please do me a favor, and drop those," then points at him.

He slowly turns his gaze to Remilia's hat and Reimu's ribbon so tightly pressed against his chest, then gulps and asks "b-but why?"

His left arm starts to shake as an odd jolt appears to lock that arm in place. The crow girl rummages through her left pocket until she pulls out Flandre's hat, and says "you managed to drop this one after I accidentally knocked you out. If you want, I can knock you out again and pry those things lose myself."

The boy twitches and whimpers softly, then shakes his head and looks down at his arm. Looking at those head pieces brings him warm memories of the girls he just lost, and now somehow both feel softer to the touch, but heavier to hold.

After a gulp, he decides it is best to just let those items go while he's conscious, and so, with massive effort from him, he manages to force his arm and those headgears away from his chest.

His arm shakes so violently, for a moment he thinks it's going to fall off, but it stays with him as he holds the items above the bed, yet is unable to let go.

The pain in his heart prevents him from letting go, and feels terrified of what might come after he releases those. What if he forgets them?

He shakes off the silly though, clenches his eyes shut, and then releases the items. He hears a small thud, feels a quick draft, then another small thud; all in just a second, and then he opens his eyes again.

To his surprise the items he thought were on the bed are not there, so he looks to the tengu girl to ask, and sees her smiling and cooing while waving all three headgears at him.

She pockets these items as quickly as she can, and doing so gives the boy a sense of cold emptiness; though it's very short lived; and when she sees his eyes liven up after a few seconds, she smiles sweetly and says "now Ail, there's much for us to talk about, so please get comfortable."

Anilan can feel as though warmth is returning to his heart, so he easily moves to a more comfortable spot on the bed, then nods to Aya, curious as to what the tengu has to say to him.

* * *

The tengu girl frowns as she looks down to the floor, and quickly says "I bet you are wondering how I know about this 'being your dream', am I right?"

The dense one nods, though he would love to know why he didn't ask _that_ in the first place.

Aya nods back, and then continues "Lord Tenma received a visit from the blonde Mountain Goddess, who explained everything before disappearing right in front of his eyes. It's... Ail, this is really hard for any of us to accept; to learn we are all dreamed up versions of someone else, so I believe it would be in your best interest to keep the dream thing secret from everyone else."

"Gotcha," quickly replies the boy with a nod. The crow tengu watches as he takes a pillow and hides behind it, as though looking for protection, or perhaps for something else.

Disregarding that, she continues with a low tone of voice; without trying to hide her sadness. "A-anyways, Ail... I also want to apologize to you. You tried to tell me about the one _you_ called NegaAil, and I almost killed you because of my blind hate."

She bows as she says "I'm so sorry. ...And that's not all I wanted to say to you."

She notices how the boy's hurt eyes show pity for her, but there is also a new fear in them. Regardless, she decides to ignore it for now and continues "you remember what I told you about; about how the other tengu were 'spreading lies' about me in their papers?"

Ail looks at her with understanding, yet that fear remains in his eyes, and says "don't tell me; you-"

She nods and quickly says "I misunderstood. I was just so angry and blinded by hatred for you, I didn't realize that they weren't ridiculing me; they were trying to help me. They were asking for any way to help me get my wing back. They were also asking others to be sensitive about... _that_ thing that the other **you** did to me."

The boy blushes and looks away, causing Aya to chuckle mischievously, point at herself, and playfully say "ooh, so you want some of this for real?"

The bashful boy with teary eyes furiously waves his arms in the air while blushing fiercely and nervously saying "dammit Aya, that's not funny! B-besides, my only girl is Sanae!"

"Not in this world," she mutters behind her teeth, quieting him down before she continues. "So, uh, anyways, what I want to say is that I am really, _very_ sorry for trying to kill you."

She blushes lightly as she forces herself to look into his eyes, and hesitantly asks "c-can you... you know, forgive me?"

The boy smiles behind his pillow, wills himself to not burry his face behind it, and then says "of course. I forgive you," just before his tears begin flowing yet again, and now awkward silence takes over the room.

He hides half of his face behind that pillow as he cries "why didn't you guys come sooner? Remilia, Flandre and Reimu would be alive if you had come!"

He sees how she stares at him, so he calms himself down, yet speaks with a cracked voice. "I don't blame you. I-it's just... they are gone. I lost them, and I couldn't even say 'goodbye'; to any of them!"

He sobs loudly enough to make it seem like a gasp while his face turns red with evident rage, and through gritted teeth he hatefully exclaims "it's all NegaAil's fault! Where is that piece of crap!?"

Aya looks at the boy as casually as ever, then calmly says "it's alright Ail, he's dead. The gate guard finished him off after you damaged his heart."

Ail gasps and jumps on the bed, and then excitedly exclaims "Meiling!? Is she alright!? Is Sakuya alright!?" He places his hands on his cheeks and nervously adds "oh no! They probably blame me for Remilia and Flandre! What should I-?"

Shameimaru lifts her hands and repeats "Whoa" a few times until the boy calms down, then after he quiets down, she says "you are most definitely an entirely different Ail. ...They are fine, and no, none of them blame you for the Scarlet sisters. In fact, they're waiting for you at th-"

"Really!?" He holds his chest after that outburst and says "oh, that's a relief!" He looks toward the door and jumps off the bed while rapidly saying "I better go look for them! I was so worried about Meiling! She was so sad-"

His words become fainter and fainter after he runs out the door and through the corridor; though that's not a problem for Aya's tengu ears; and after he's finally far enough, Shameimaru sighs and says "ayayayaya~. He's so impatient."

* * *

Ail arrives to the foyer in just a few minutes, where the fairy maids and Meiling are working on fixing the destroyed wall above the entrance, while Sakuya sits on the lower steps of the stair leading to the first floor.

The dense one smiles when he sees them and decides to approach them, so he flies down to the ground floor, where as soon as he lands, a knife appears pressed against his neck, and so he lifts his hands defensively.

"We do not fly over the rails. We walk down the stairs like civilized, sentient beings. Did I make myself clear, Mr. Inmodo?"

Anilan shakes as her dark and cold voice dances around his ears, but manages to nod fast and nervously, and then yelps a meek "understood!"

A few seconds pass by and the knife slowly retreats, then that cold voice becomes a sweet giggle, then Sakuya playfully says "well, what a nice reaction I got from you. I missed that sweet you."

The boy turns around to look at the tired, smiling chief maid, who more calmly continues "it's still so hard to believe you are the same Ail. The one with the red eyes would have tried to have his way with me right there and then."

Ail smiles and sighs as he holds his chest in relief, then suddenly frowns and says "he was a vile monster! The world is better off without him!" His face softens, then he adds "and how are you feeling?"

Sakuya hugs herself as she casually glances left and says "I'll be alright. And Ail;" she turns her gaze to the boy's face and continues "I am sorry I didn't listen to you before. It's just; well you must understand you had completely lost my trust; well, at least until after Meiling almost choked me to death to defend you. That opened my eyes; figuratively speaking."

The dense one smiles again and bows his head slightly while saying "I understand." He lifts his head again and adds "there's no need to apologize."

He turns around to look at Meiling who stands right behind him, and with a warm, yet pained smile he says "I am so sorry you had to clean up my mess. Are you alright? URGH!"

She answers him by giving him a rib-crushing hug, and then sets him back on the floor; where he struggles against his unbalancing daze; then says "I'm fine. Please don't worry about me."

Her face darkens a bit and her lips flatten, and then she speaks in a lower tone, hinting to her anger. "I heard everything he said, Ail." She clenches her fists and continues "I can't believe I actually trusted _that_ Ail before. He was worst than a monster! Wh-what he made you do was **_unforgivable!_** And what he planned to do afterwards was utterly **_despicable_**!"

This time it is Ail that surprises Meiling with a sudden hug; though his is a mere featherweight tap in comparison; and after she returns to her friendly self, he says "it's alright Meiling. He's gone now, thanks to you."

After he lets her go, he alternates his gaze and smiles between the two girls, and then asks "so what happened to his body?"

Sakuya shifts uncomfortably before saying "we had the fairy maids go outside and use their powers over nature on that fowl body. They had the plants consume it in minutes."

Meiling glowers again and continues for the maid "but doing that tainted the garden, so I had to act fast before that taint spread."

"Hey, at least have the decency to admit you had help!"

That familiar and demanding voice causes excitement to fill the dense boy, who turns his head toward the door so fast, he almost gets dizzy.

His whole face brightens up at the sight of Minoriko and Shizuha standing under the doorway; the youngest is looking around with authority, while the eldest looks tired as she gazes all around the inside of the mansion.

"You! You're alright! You're both okay!" That is all the boy can exclaim after seeing them, to which the eldest Aki smiles and waves, while the young sister scowls while angrily saying "well, yeah; um, thanks for your help in getting sis back... and all that."

She looks away for a moment, closes her eyes, then sternly says "but don't even _think_ I'll apologize to you! What I said before, I said because he deserved it, and _he_ was inside you at the time, so there! Humph!" Her cheeks turn a bit pink as she adds "b-but don't think I'm not grateful for your help! I-I'm just stating the facts here!"

"Move!" Momiji and Hatate enter the mansion be means of pushing the autumn sisters out of the way, then the crow girl says "you were right! Telling everyone, like, about Shizuha so they remembered her brought her back."

The white wolf raises an eyebrow, sniffs the air around, then says "not a single trace of the other Ail is left. Good job."

Before the boy can respond, he finds himself being forcefully embraced by Shizuha, who weakly whispers "thanks for the help. Tell the other me about this, alright?"

He looks at her with confusion, but quickly understands what she means, and smiles while nodding.

After she lets him go to reunite with her little sister, Ail looks around himself until he finally speaks up. "All of you, I am so glad to see you again. Even more glad that you're not trying to kill me; but Reimu... Remilia, and Flandre. I couldn't save them! I..."

His tears of regret begin anew, but he's stopped quickly when both Meiling and Sakuya place a supporting hand on his shoulders, then the gate guardian says "Ail, their deaths were inevitable. I know; I saw what happened. There was nothing you could have done to save a single one of them."

"Not even for Flandre," quickly adds the chief maid. "That fiend was inside of you, and Lady Flandre's sacrifice forced him out of your body."

The dense boy raises an eyebrow in suspicion, making Sakuya nervously add "I know this because she cared about you very much. It's the only explanation as to why she just rushed straight at... that weapon of yours."

"Now stop crying like some hurt pup and man up, Anilan," says Momiji with a strict voice. "Instead of crying so much, learn from these experiences; honor their spirits with bravery and resolve, not sorrow. Discipline yourself and make sure none of this _ever_ happens again!"

Anilan manages to calm down, forces a smile, and then says "y-yeah, I'm sorry." He sniffles one last time, and then says "yes, you are right. But it's just so painful; to see someone you care for die like that, right before your very eyes; I never thought it could be this horrible."

Even the white wolf looks at him with compassion, but it's Hatate who speaks before anyone else. "Aww, cheer up Ail. Not all is lost. I mean, thanks to you, like, many others were spared."

Ail raises an eyebrow in confusion, but long before he can ask what she meant, he has Shanghai's blue eyes a few inches away from his own, analyzing him carefully before shouting "yes, I was right! This really _is_ a good Ail!"

The boy merely remains standing on the spot as the doll hugs his face, while Alice and Hourai poke their heads inside the Scarlet Mansion.

* * *

An hour later, there is a very large group of girls at the mansion's dining room. Those that were at the foyer with Ail not long ago are now joined by Satori, Orin, Reisen, and even Marisa.

The brown haired boy has been forced to sit in the middle of the left side of the table, where everyone can see him, and he can see them back; though he is greatly pained to see the empty master's chair where Remilia should be sitting, and the tattered chair to its right where Flandre used to sit.

Aya stands behind Ail, holds him by the shoulders; waking him from his sorrowful thoughts; and softly says "everybody here knows about the dream, so feel free to say what you need; if you need to."

Alice, Shanghai and Hourai sit in front of the boy, and all three keep staring at him as if he was some sort of side-show, or perhaps something else.

After enough staring, Shanghai hops off Alice's shoulder and stands on the table in front of the boy. After all the girls quiet down and look at her, she points at him and says "there is no doubt about it. This is the Ail we knew before the marriage."

She looks at Reisen, and says "and definitely the one who guided me to help all of you out."

Marisa rests her head on her right hand while she drums her fingers twice on the table, and with complete disbelief while giving the boy a stink-eye, she blandly says "so you say. Why exactly are we sitting around this murderous asshole? True, he's acting all cute and nice now, but... Tell me your tale, Shanghai, before I blast the face off the fucking bastard that cost Reimu's life."

The little girl, the three tengu, the satori, and the kasha all get in the way of the witch, while Reisen merely looks away, the two autumn goddesses seem unsure of what to do, and Sakuya and Meiling prepare to throttle the witch if needed.

Alice, who has her fingers linked in front of her mouth, remains looking indifferent; regardless of Hourai's edging her to help the boy; then coldly says "yes Shanghai, I am with Marisa on this one. What _exactly _was it this... _boy_ here asked you to do? What has made him so special to you?"

The little blonde in a dark purple dress glances between the witch and her mother, then sighs and says "well, it's like this:"

**FLASHBACK**

"_He took me out of his pocket, back then in the village, and he was very pale and crying and scared. He took my prison very close to himself, and I thought that 'hey, that was it for me,' but he did something very different of what I expected._"

Ail holds Shanghai's old crystal prison close to his mouth while cradling it with both hands, and whispers to it "Shanghai, please listen. We don't have much time! I need to ask a favor of you, so please listen carefully."

He sobs and continues "I am going to free you now, and when I do, I need you to go to Eientei at the Bamboo Forest of the Lost." He sobs and sniffles again. "There, you will see a rabbit girl with lilac hair. Help her keep on her feet. If she falls, she will be killed, and I can't go and help her."

Yet again he sobs, and then continues "after that, go and get your body back, then head toward Chireiden at the underground. Take the Dark Blowhole at the foot of Youkai Mountain. I will give you something that will let you, and three others pass through without trouble. Once you reach the mansion there, use half of the power I'll give you on the satori's lose third eye at the entrance hall, then use the other half in five separate bits to undo the curse on the kasha's tail."

He sobs once more, and continues "a-and if you can, before you go there, try and visit Keine; make sure she's alright. If you can't help, then keep moving. Also, try and go to Myourenji too. There, you will find a girl dressed in black. She has a charm stuck on her throat. I will give you what you need to pull that thing out of her so that things can start normalizing for them over there."

After whispering all of that as fast as he can, the fingers on his right hand start glowing like bright stars.

He touches the crystal with that hand, and the glow passes on to Shanghai's soul, and soon after a flick from his thumb, she is free.

"_I was very skeptical about it at first, but after getting a good look at his eyes, I felt compelled to do as he asked, and so I flew straight to Eientei, which I found rather quickly. There I found the rabbit girl he spoke of, and she was just about to fall, just like he said she would be!_"

The little soul flies to Reisen's side, pushes her so that she remains standing, and then slaps her several times across the face with her ghostly tail for good measure until the Moon Rabbit reacts with anger.

"What's the big idea, you little..." Reisen's anger quickly subsides when she notices the tray with the food on her hands, then yelps when she notices her dirty and messy hair dangling from her side.

She looks at the little spirit, bows with confused gratitude, and then she says to herself "Ail... I... I remember now! Th-that fiend."

"_With the Moon Rabbit taken care of, I went straight home, just as he asked, and when Mama Alice and sis saw me, they started screaming. I had to slap them several times to calm them down before I went to find my body. They punished me after I came back."_

"_Hey, you slapped me hard! I was sore!_" complains Alice, to which Shanghai replies "_mama, don't interrupt my story._"

After being on a corner at the living room for almost an hour, Shanghai hops right onto Alice's shoulder, vaguely repeats what Ail had told her without mentioning him, and then they all set off to the Human village; even though the puppeteer is merely curious as to her little daughter's behavior.

Once there, they go straight to Keine's school, but the history teacher panics when Hourai mentions Ail's name, and so, to prevent her from committing suicide, Shanghai chops her sister on the back of the neck; a little too hard. Alice has no idea of what had happened.

After being kicked out of the school by the angry fiery immortal, they all decide to go to Myouren Temple, where they are attacked by Kyouko, Ichirin and Unzan.

"_Dealing with Keine was a complete failure thanks to Hourai's mouth, but Myouren was a little better, though still a mess. And yet, it wasn't a complete loss._"

After Alice blasts Kyouko and Unzan with her spell card "Curse Sign, Hourai Doll," Ichirin gives in and acts as though she's about to be executed, but after Shanghai manages to explain her mission, everything changes, and the nun happily takes them to Nue.

The undefined one sits on a branch on one of the trees at the outskirts of the temple grounds when they find her, and after the little blonde girl takes that charm off the girl's throat, that very girl; as happily excited as she is; blasts everyone and everything with lasers, and then takes off toward the Misty Lake.

"_Well, I'm not sure if that disaster was a success or not, but she seemed happy. Anyways, that's when we decided it was high-time we went to that Chireiden Ail mentioned; and so we left._"

Shanghai, Hourai and Alice arrive to the cave that leads to the underground city, where she hopes they will find Chireiden.

Once inside, the attackers the puppeteer expected never come, but neither does anyone to greet them, and so they are on their own inside the dark and humid cave.

After what seems like a day, they finally reach the only mansion in that entire underground world.

"_Once we reached that mansion, we were greeted by the cutest little button-of-a-girl named Petal, and when I told her what I was asked to do, she punched me in the face. **After** that, she took me to Miss Satori's third eye, where I unloaded part of that energy, just as he asked._"

After the light envelops the third eye, it opens itself up, the vines it had formed to protect itself return to being thin strands of red and yellow, the flower underneath it has its three symbols; a blue triangle, a green hexagon and a red clover; glow while Satori is magically carried toward the eye, and then, after a blinding flash, Satori Komeiji appears before them as a whole; though a little skinny.

"_After that, the kasha called Orin appeared. She was with another satori that had the cutest dull greenish hair I've ever seen, and that little bitch seemed to have read my inner thoughts. She told everyone Ail gave me my instructions, and that's when Miss Satori told everyone to trust him. Mama wasn't convinced._"

After what appeared like a tense moment, everyone suddenly calms down as Satori lowers her hands and says "good. Now Orin, let this little one look at your tails. She has something that should restore the on you lost."

Orin looks confused at her master, but soon complies with the request, and Shanghai, acting as if on automatic, raises her right hand, her five little fingers start glowing like stars, then she grabs hold of the stub of a tail the cat had, then one by one, the sparks of light enter the stub, each pushing away and consuming a black aura from the tail's root.

As soon as her second tail grows back, the kasha jumps on the little girl, licks her face repeatedly until her pink haired master orders her to stop, and then, like magic, a heavy tension looming over everyone's shoulders lifts.

"_Not even Mama Alice knows how it happened, but after I was done with all of that stuff, we all felt really good and happy. And so, with my tasks done, we three decided we had to look for Ail to really know what was going on, and that's when-_"

**Flashback end**

"That's when Orin and I decided we were going to join them in their search," calmly says Satori while looking straight at Marisa.

The kasha lets out a cute "nya" after a nod, then adds "and that's when we found Reisen outside the cave. She said she just _had_ to find Shanghai and ask her about many things."

Reisen is now one of those that are on guard for Ail, and as she faces both Marisa and Alice, she says "that's right. I had to know how that little soul knew about me, and after she explained what little she did at the time, I decided to join them. Guess I'm glad I did."

By now, Alice's face has softened, and so has Marisa's; though the black and white youkai witch seems a bit suspicious of the boy.

Momiji steps forward, getting the attention of everyone there, and smiles as she says "so that's why we found you at the mountain. You're all lucky the autumn goddesses were with you, or we would have had to kill you all." Somehow, the girls didn't find that as hilarious as Momiji did.

Finally, Marisa sighs and looks down at the table as though in defeat, then says "alright, fine. I won't ask how he knew about all of that, but I do wish to ask, what now Ail? Reimu... is gone; and your little house at the village crumbled to pieces right before my very eyes, right before I saw the danmaku show in the sky."

The dense boy breathes in after the girls allow him space; now that he's no longer in any danger of being attacked; and says "well, after thinking hard about it, I think I have to go to the Moriya Shrine."

Silence takes the room hostage as the girls all stare at the dense boy. He is dense, but not stupid, and they all know **_HE_** knows going there is a huge mistake, and yet they can see in his eyes the lack of choices available to him.

They all sit down while the fairy maids serve the plates with food, then Anilan breaks the silence by asking "I wonder whatever happened to Nue?"

Chirps suddenly invade the large room, and everyone except Ail and Hourai stand up with their guards raised.

A moment later, Nue's voice echoes as she says "who do you think saved your ass from all those hungry dark fairies while you froze to death?"

Too suddenly for him to react, Cirno falls on the table in front of Ail, tackles him to the floor with a power hug, then the undefined girl slowly descends from wherever she was hiding, smiling while saying "I knew who sent that girl the moment she took the invisible charm right out of my neck. Well played, kiddo."

Marisa suddenly bangs the table with her fist, and as a vein pulsates on her forehead she says "say, Ail, by any chance, you wouldn't happen to know why the _FUCK_ did a stupid blonde in a maid's outfit saw fit to nail **_THIS_** on my back?"

She produces a crudely drawn picture of Shizuha kicking a tree and knocking out its leaves, with the words in orange "Shizuha Aki. Believe in the goddess of turning leaves."

Cirno sticks her tongue out at Marisa, while Ail chuckles nervously, and hesitantly says "uuh... I can explain."

* * *

Meanwhile, flying over the misty skies of a place unknown, Shikieiki and Mima scan their surroundings in their hurried search for Mayohiga.

"I think I see it," says the supposedly-evil spirit after placing a hand over her eyes and narrowing them for good measure. "We just needed to get good and lost."

The Yama sighs with relief from anxiety and says "_finally,_" then looks to the magician spirit to her right and adds "you know, I could have just come here on my own! It would have been faster."

She then notices the worried face Mima is making, gets a little closer, and says "you know, attachments for someone like you are dangerous. I understand you're worried, but I never thought-"

She stops right there when she notices that worried expression on the spirit is turning darker, and says "don't think you made a mistake. He had been making too many mistakes of his own; he _had_ to see where his actions were leading him! Mima, you know this, you almost killed him when trying to drill that fact straight into his head."

"But that pain," begins the woman. "I know he can't really die while in there, but to be driven to commit such an act. I made the experience far too strong for his conscious mind!"

They land in front of a large Japanese mansion with a Western style roof, where Shikieiki places her hand on Mima's shoulder before they approach the building and says "he will come back to us stronger because of the experience, and he has regained that which made him who he was back when we first met him. Now clear your thoughts, and try to break that attachment. It's too strong."

Mima nods twice, then they walk to the sliding door, ignoring the bits of grass and flowers growing around the porch.

Inside the house, Ran finishes cleaning the table from the full plates of food, then sighs and mutters "where is Chen now? She skipped lunch again."

Her right ear twitches when she hears the guests' footsteps, and immediately after the first set of soft knocks on the sliding door, she calls "I'll be there in a minute," then thinks "_who the heck could it be this time; a**nother** lost traveler?_"

There is a third knock on the door by the time she arrives to it so she impatiently says "alright, hold your horses; I'm here already," then gasps with surprise when she opens de door and sees who her guests are.

Shikieiki and Mima waste no time and walk straight inside while the Yama says "forgive our sudden intrusion, but this is a matter of upmost importance."

Ran has very little time to voice her complaints by the time the girls enter Yukari's room, but breaks through them to block their path into said room and exclaims "wait just a minute. I can't just let you barge into my Master's bedroom like this! State your business beforehand!"

The spirit is about to throttle the fox, so Eiki holds her back while bowing apologetically, then presents her round device; which is glowing with such intensity the entire room lights up as if a pure white sun were in it; and says "We can't get Ail out of the dream world even though he has succeeded with flying colors, and we thought that maybe she could help."

The nine-tailed kitsune raises an eyebrow and an ear in confusion, then asks "dream world? Ail? Wait, he's in the dream world now!? Why didn't Yukari tell me?"

The guests face palm at the same time so hard, Ran winces at the sound of the smack. Regardless of that, she steps aside, and Mima rushes straight over to Yukari before any more obstructions get in her way.

She lifts the covers off the woman to reveal the pyramid-like device glowing equally bright as Shikieiki's own, and Chen sleeping curled up around said device on top of Yukari's stomach.

Both Mima and Ran's noses begin to draw blood, but the evil spirit takes the nekomata and hands her over the blushing fox, takes the device, and presses the triangular button.

...

Nothing happens, even after the impatient spirit repeatedly presses the button at a rapid pace. She tosses the device over to the Yama, grabs the sleeping blonde by the shoulders, and shakes her violently while shouting "wake up you lazy slob! We need your help here!"

Yukari's head flops around like some rubber doll, and even after the messy shake leaves her as a mess on the bed, she remains snoring, smiling, drooling and moaning as though having a very pleasant dream.

"Why won't this bitch wake up!?" asks the furious Mima while shaping her fingers like claws.

Eiki places both devices on a table next to her; where both Ran and Chen observe said items with great interest; then takes a tiny glass orb out of her pocket, and says "Komachi, something's wrong here! Yukari won't wake up!"

The tiny glass bead grows to the size of a softball, and before the shinigami speaks, Mugetsu exclaims "oh, it's Yukari. Wow, she's still asleep? You didn't hit her that hard, did you sis?"

A dark shadow is cast over the Yama's eyes, while an even darker aura grows around Mima, who turns around to look at the image of Gengetsu on the glass orb, and ominously asks "what did you do?"

The blonde, winged dream demon; not really realizing the danger she is in; flaps her hand around while nonchalantly saying "I just put her under a sleep spell; big deal. She'll wake up eventually. Heh-heh; she's probably having lewd dreams with that girl again."

"Komachi," commands Shikieiki, "please make sure that girl is ready for me when I arrive there. She's going to wake this woman up, or she'll have to shovel the Minotaur's manure for a hundred years straight."

The pink-haired girl's face appears on the bead as she salutes her boss, then the image turns back to Gengetsu, who now seems to realize she is far in deeper than she could have ever thought she would ever be.

* * *

Ail stands just outside the Scarlet Devil Mansion's foyer while addressing Sakuya and Meiling, whom stand just inside the half-repaired mansion entrance.

"Are you sure you're going to be alright?" asks the boy with concern, wondering if he should stay longer and help with the cleanup; after all, he feels responsible for the Scarlets' deaths.

Sakuya sighs while Meiling chuckles, then the chief maid impatiently says "hey, we already told you it wasn't your fault, so let it go, Anilan!"

The gate guardian merely rolls her eyes while she speaks with a smile. "Just go; you have very important things to do."

Hatate takes him by the shoulders and roughly pulls him away from the mansion, earning a scolding from Aya who says "hey, be more careful with him, you shut-in!"

The twin-tailed girl leans over to Momiji and mutters "that's from the bird that wanted him dead not too long ago," and then her counterpart takes Ail away from her.

Minoriko approaches the mansion girls, bows, and says "thank you for your hospitality. And don't worry about _him_; we'll take good care of him."

Aya is now gently pushing the boy further away from the mansion, while Satori pats his back and says "at least until we get him to the shrine."

He twitches when he hears where his next destination is, and remembers Yukari's words. "_Whatever may happen in there, you keep away from that shrine, you understand! Do not go there for any reason!_"

The mind reader sees everything and comments "so, your world's Yukari warned you about it. Ail, are you certain there is no other choice?"

He shakes his head for both acknowledging Satori's words and answering her question, and to try and shake off his own fear; and that's when he realizes how gently the black haired tengu is treating him.

He knows the real Aya is nice to him, but she would never give him special treatment such as this, unless there was a reason for it, and then it hits him; she feels she owes him for trying to murder him, while at the same time is sympathizing with him.

Regardless, he is glad for the gentle treatment, and for once ever since entering this dream, he feels warm and safe. "_How long will this last_," he wonders as the tengu girl pulls him to a stop.

From the mansion, Meiling and Sakuya bow while the maid loudly says "please don't worry about the mansion. Everything will be just fine."

A sudden smile takes the boy for reasons he cannot explain, but he looks back at the girls regardless of it, and with just a look from his eyes they know he is thanking them for their support.

All eyes turn left when Nue shouts "no way star-eye! You are NOT getting close to him. In fact, you should leave! I mean, what the heck are you doing here when we are here to protect him!?"

Cirno jumps in, scaring Shizuha away from the argument, and exclaims "you leave him alone you big bully, or I'll freeze your undies!"

The witch places her face as close as possible to the ice fairy's own, and with a threateningly low tone of voice she challenges her. "I want to see you try, stupid squirt."

Reisen grabs both girls by the back of the collars and easily separates them, then casually says "quit it. Even Marisa agreed she would help him, so there's no reason for this."

She looks at the witch with dangerous eyes and adds "isn't that right, Marisa Kirisame? Will you keep your word, or would you dare try backstabbing him while we're here watching over him?"

The black and white youkai magician pouts and looks away, manages to say "o-of course not-" but before she finishes her part, several thin wires wrap themselves around her, then Alice easily lifts her up with said wires, sighs, then says "let's just get a move on."

All eyes turn to Ail, who stands stiff in place with his hands cradled around his waist.

Orin is in her cat form, and is purring contently on the boy's arms while rubbing her head against his stomach.

The boy's eyes show nothing but pure terror as he holds the content kasha so close to his person; and to everybody there, it seems as though he fears a sudden attack, but Satori knows.

"Orin, he's uncomfortable. Get off him now," sweetly commands the mind reader, and the two-tailed cat immediately jumps off him, takes her youkai form, and says "aww, but he's so soft and squishy, just like before."

Ail's body shakes fiercely; the fear inside his heart increases. Aya places a comforting hand on his shoulder and softly calls "Ail? Ail, what's the matter with you?"

"He thinks he's a danger to all of us," begins the purple-haired girl. "He fears he will cause our deaths, just like the vampires and his wif-er, and the Hakurei."

Some girls scowl while others look at him with pity; though he's noticing none of that; and when Momiji decides a little tough love will help, a rock flies between all the girls and smacks him straight on the forehead, knocking him out straight onto Aya's hands.

They look back at Sakuya, who is tossing another rock and catching it on her right hand. She winks at the girls, chuckles nervously, and then says "well, I didn't use my knives; and look, he's obviously relaxed now."

True enough, the boy is smiling and snoring softly while resting on Aya's arms, though the pulsating bump on his forehead is cause for some winces and grimaces.

"Let's just go," impatiently says Hatate, and so fourteen girls and one lucky unconscious boy carried by one of them fly off toward the Youkai Mountain; specifically, to the Moriya Shrine on top of the mountain.

Meiling and Sakuya look at each other to share sad smiles, and after the large group disappears in an instant, the girls go back inside, and the maid commands "well, just because Lady Remilia isn't here doesn't mean we're going to fall behind morals and decency! This remains the Scarlet Devil Mansion, so everyone get back to work."

Several fairy maids and the gate guard can be heard acknowledging the maids commands, and repair noises begin anew.

Meanwhile, down at the basement, inside the massive library, Patchouli calls "Koakuma, please take this book back to shelve 1058-A, and bring me the book on ice spells."

From the second balcony, the little devil peeks her head with a rather impish smile, then sings "comiiing~!"

The entire library fritzes up for a second, then everything seems to go back to normal in an instant."

"Koakuma, please take this book back to shelve 1058-A, and bring me the book on ice spells."

"Comiiing~!"

The room fritz again, and the conversation repeats itself over and over again, and the girls never seem to notice.

At a corner on the second floor balcony, hiding under one of the massive bookshelf's shadow, a pair of furry bats squeak as they hold each other together for warmth.

Remilia and Flandre Scarlet live, but are now trapped in an endless time loop that will repeat itself for as long as the dream world remains active. And so; although the Scarlets live, they remain lost to the dream world.

Later, over the wintery Misty Lake at night, Aya gasps with surprise when the boy softly says "you know, I never thought you would apologize so soon."

She smiles at him as he says "I'm ok. You can let go now;" but she ignores him and says "soon? I thought long and hard about this, dummy. I spent three whole weeks thinking about it; and let me tell you now; I was convinced it was **_you_** who had to apologize to **_me_**."

The boy looks surprised into the girl's eyes, and then says "weeks? B... but Aya, it's only been five days since we had that... disagreement."

The tengu reporter looks at him with doubt and confusion for some time before finally saying "let's not think on this too much. Please accept my apology and-"

"Shh! Quiet," anxiously whispers Cirno. She looks around, nervous about something, and then whispers "if Letty sees him again, she will kill us all and take him!"

And so they continue onward toward the Youkai Mountain while trying to be as quiet as they can all be.

* * *

The trip to the foot of the mountain is uneventful, save for the few glitched fairies that were shooting white squares that were supposed to be magic bullets; though only Ail seems to have seen this glitch happen.

After reaching the waterfall, all fifteen individuals ascend to the Moriya Shrine grounds. Everyone is quiet, even Cirno; all apparently knowing something the dense boy can only feel in his heart, but feels is wise to keep quiet and not ask about it.

"We're here," quietly comments Aya just before they all fly over the rocks. "Try to keep quiet."

The girls and boy fly toward the shrine grounds, although Ail notices how slowly the others are approaching the area, and so he decides to follow their example, until it happens.

Just as soon as Shizuha; the last on the group; flies over the edge of the mountain, everyone falls to the ground with a heavy thud, not even bouncing when they hit.

Ail quickly lifts his head and looks around the girls on the ground, then exclaims "what the heck just happened!?"

Hatate is the first of the girls to lift herself up, and exclaims "it's the goddess!"

An eerie childlike laugh echoes around them, the edges of the mountain rise in the form of earthy walls that traps them all within those sacred grounds, then Suwako's childish, yet terrifying voice echoes everywhere. "He-hee~! You shouldn't have come here, Ail. And you, tengu; how dare you bring this vile excrement into my wonderful, peaceful home? You should know better!"

The dense boy quickly stands in front of Aya and the other tengu, raises his hands above his head in surrender, and says "Miss Moriya, listen to me! I didn't come here to cause any trouble."

He twists his body to look at the girls behind him and says "and they are merely curious about my affairs." He turns around again to look toward the road leading to the shrine and continues "so please spare them! I just need to speak to you and Lady Yasak-"

"NO, DON'T!" By the time Aya covers his mouth, the name of 'Yasaka' slips through his lips, and soon after the earth begins to shake, and giant, animated frogs made of hardened dirt and humanoid monsters made out of rock rise from beneath the ground.

The world around them all feels as though it's shaking hard and violently as Suwako's dark, childlike voice echoes inside their very bodies. "How _dare _you speak her name! How **_DARE_** you even _THINK_ of her after what you did! You vile, loathsome, lecherous waste! You will pay dearly for that!"

A stone slab rises right in front of the boy, and there is Suwako, glaring down to him with glowing, poisonous grey eyes.

Ail is suddenly on his knees, grasping his head and groaning loudly as though in great pain while new dream memories fill his mind.

He can see himself seducing Kanako, then torturing and pleasing her repeatedly while siphoning her essence until she vanishes before his very eyes. He can see himself laughing after she's gone, and now the good Ail feels as though he's going to return his meal.

"Get him up!" commands Momiji as she fights off a stone golem. Aya manages to take him and jump away from an earth frog that was just about to eat him, and then shouts "AIL, WHAT'S THE MATTER! SNAP OUT OF IT!"

Though he can hear the tengu speaking to him, he can also hear NegaAil laughing in his mind, torturing him further, even after death.

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail and Agava were created by Willie G.R.

Ail and NegaAil's spell cards: "Torrential Waves" (an updated version of "Mad Waves, Raging Waves"); and "Blast Sign, Healing Kaboom" (an updated version of "Blast Sign, Expansion that Soothes") were created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami was created by Snapshot 2010

JAN 18 2013

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

**A/N:**

**And the story finally continues after such a long hiatus. Sorry for the long wait, but I just had to re-read and fix the chapters before this. There were so many errors and inconsistencies... but that's in the past now. The narration and such should feel a whole lot smoother (at least that's what I hope), as I am being more meticulous about what I write, and thanks to a recent PM, I am able to see certain narrative errors that halted the story's flow. I really hope I am doing better now.**

**That reminds me, I am famished. I need to be fed reviews. You know, a review might have helped me quicken my pace with the rewrites and this chapter, but alas, I remained starving.**

**Anyways, until next chapter.**

Satori: Well, Willie, long time, no see. What have you been up...? Oh.

Me: *Sigh* Please don't say it. Just be glad I'm back.

Satori: Fine, but really, you should get yourself a girlfriend already. You know- *mouth covered by Willie*

Yukari: Ufufu~. If I were you, I would take my hand off before she bites.

Me: *Takes hand off Satori's mouth.* Hey, don't bite me!

Satori: Don't touch me again!

Yukari: Aww, you two make a lovely couple.

Me & Satori: God damn it, Yukari, butt out!

Yukari: *Holds their heads via gap, winds them back, then forces them to a rather nasty caving.* I'm sorry; did you say something?

Me & Satori: *Writhing on the ground and holding our pained heads*

Yukari: I thought so. *Sweet smile.* Oh, and let's not forget-*silver washtub to the head knockout!*

Koakuma: Tee-hee! I got you. Anyway, as she was saying, please humor this kid and leave a comment or review for this chapter. Also, did you know he spent most of December playing Wii U? He's got the plumber's game, and the amusement park game, and that handsome assassin's game too!

Me: *Smashes Koakuma's head with a washtub.* Damned blabbermouth!

Satori: Get a girlfriend and stop thinking such things! Pervert!

Me: Grrrrr...


	12. Chapter 12

Stone, dirt, dust and blood fly everywhere on that warm afternoon at the Moriya Shrine grounds.

Reisen blasts a stone frog right on top of Minoriko, who jumps away from a stone fist from the golem that just cut her sister's calf with the sharp edges on its legs.

Momiji cuts the golem in half with a vertical slash before moving toward two stone frogs cornering Cirno and Nue, but her assistance becomes unneeded when the nue youkai starts to cackle while unleashing thick lasers out of UFOs that surrounds them.

Hatate zips by in front of the white wolf and snaps her out of her shock by taking a quick picture, then shoots bullets at a king-sized frog that's going straight after Aya and Ail.

Marisa keeps shooting smaller versions of her Master Spark to deal with the rock monsters while keeping away from the battle by flying on her broom, and joining her are Alice, Shanghai and Hourai, and all three use small lasers to deal with the creatures as if they were nothing.

"Satori, don't let them corner you! Use spell cards if you have to!" commands the black and white while spraying more lasers around, saving Orin and Satori from four of those golems that had surrounded them.

The mind reader gasps and shoots a single orb forward, but Suwako already has her by the neck and is threatening to break it in half while smiling disturbingly.

The kasha tries saving her master, but is blasted in the face with an exploding frog before she can even move.

The blonde looks to the mind reader and threateningly hisses "you shouldn't have brought him here. Now you will all die-AAAAAAARGH!"

Satori falls and is taken by Aya after Ail shoots a blue shard at Suwako that severs her wrist. A minor injury for a god, yet it apparently hurts like hell either way; the wincing and doubling over repeatedly being a good indication of that.

Suwako snarls while shaking the pain off her arm, adjusts her hat with her newly-born hand so as to look more menacing, then asks "oiii~ what gives? _You_ are saving **_her_** instead of laughing while I gut her? You're screwin' with me."

The boy and the goddess stare at each other menacingly and are ready to attack each other, but to his luck a stone frog falls in front her, a stone golem stomps its massive foot in front of him, then Alice and Shanghai swoop down to knock him away from another stone frog and blast both the frog and the golem to rubble.

"You idiot, keep focused!" shouts the little doll, showing actual concern for his well being.

He nods to acknowledge her, and then gasps when Alice screams bloodily. She has been crushed by one of the stomping golems and has been damaged greatly.

"ALICE" calls Anilan while activating his Yozoragan blood limit. He tackles the monster away with ease, shoots focused orange bullets that blast it to pebbles, then quickly places his ethereal wings on the puppeteer while Shanghai and Hourai desperately cry for her.

As soon as the blonde girl is healed, she punches the boy on the face and says "what the hell do you think you're doing!? GO! Let us handle these things!"

At that very moment, Cirno screams out loud and Nue is heard desperately calling for the ice fairy afterward. "Alice, I can't," complains the boy. "I can't leave you here on your own! What if you need me here for more healing?"

The blonde witch stands up, slaps his face, gives him a hug, then says "how I've missed you, Ail."

While he's stunned, she turns him around, grabs and lifts him by his belt and the back of his shirt, then throws him with all her might down the road to the shrine.

After he lands, and before he can complain, Aya flies by and shouts "don't disrespect us! We are all strong yokai and can handle this little scramble! You keep going and find your way back home! Now go!"

He hesitantly turns to face the road to the shrine, sighs, then moves down that road just as the tengu shouts "**GOOOO!**"

When he's out of earshot, she smiles and says "how I'll miss that idiot." Blood starts flowing down her hair, stains her face as she lets herself fall on her knee on the ground, and then she turns to face Suwako on a large stone frog.

The girls smile at each other, then the reporter swings her fan and turns the frog into sand, while Suwako is pushed back into the battlefield.

* * *

After being forced out of the battle, Ail makes his way toward the Moriya Shrine by running as fast as Orin, but he is disturbed by a blur that moves behind the rocks, bushes and trees to his right.

The blur moves ahead of him and stops when he stops to investigate. "_Maybe Suwako broke free of the battle... but I don't feel any kind of godly energy. Could she be using a camouflage?_"

The blur moves again, this time getting behind the boy's position, but still won't attack.

He is grateful there hasn't been an attack, but that can only mean Suwako is preparing something nasty, so he must be ready of absolutely anything. Not that he can be ready for the unknown anyway.

He closes his eyes and activates his energy sonar, but the shadow moves too fast for him to make out what's really following him.

"_This must be Suwako. Only a god and move like this. Ah, wait, youkai too. Reimu told me so once. But who-?_"

The blur moves again as he thinks, this time straight at him, but suddenly moves away after he flinches. "_She is going to kill me at this rate!_" he thinks in desperation.

He suddenly stiffens up with fright, then looks back at Reisen, who stands with one leg crossed in front of the other, staring coldly at him without saying a word.

Ail gulps and calms down, calls off the energy sonar, hesitantly smiles and asks "h-hey, Reisen, what's wrong? Is the fight ov-?"

"For the sake of my life and my peace of mind;" the Moon Rabbit speaks over Ail as the wind hits her hard, making her lilac hair flail about beautifully and menacingly. "Anilan Inmodo Leuch, I beg for your forgiveness, but I have no choice."

He tries to word his concerns, but Reisen blasts him with her lunacy inducing eyes, and now he finds himself inside a red tube that keeps swirling all around him and keeps forcing him towards a fire-bathed image of Eirin.

Her monstrous, scowling eyes glow as she draws a knife out of her pocket and lifts it above her head in anticipation for when the boy is near enough.

He can't feel himself moving at all, he can't feel anything pulling him or any kind of magical or energy force that might be moving him closer to that threat; which keeps growing in size the closer he gets; but he is moving toward that fiery dark Eirin, and there's nothing he can do about it.

The moment has come. Eirin is right on top of him; that giant knife is glistening with unnatural light from an unknown source, and now all seems lost to him, until the figure suddenly shrinks back to a more normal size.

Eirin holds her face with her free hand and places the knife to her right after she drops on her knees, and then Ail is back on the stone path at the Moriya Shine grounds, standing right where he was when he saw Reisen, while said Moon Rabbit is sobbing softly on the ground right in front of him.

"Miss Reisen, are you... alright?" hesitantly asks the boy with great concern over her well being.

She lifts a painful smile at him as tears roll down her cheeks and with that smile so strongly on her face she says "I just can't do it. It's impossible. Just look at that face you're making. It's so sweet."

The dense boy gives her a very confused look, but his concern remains, so she just pushes herself back on her feet to ease his heart and shakes her head after declining his offered hand.

Once she's done dusting her skirt and legs, she smiles brightly, giggles for good measure, then says "it feels like it's been ages since you gave me that look. Reminds me of the time you begged Master not to punish me; back when you first turned into that cute dog."

Ail sighs off his anxiety, though his concern remains when he asks "Miss Reisen, what's wrong? Please, tell me if you need help with anything. I-I can come here another time if-"

She holds his lips to shut him up and shakes her head while chuckling, then releases him and twirls once in place, gives him a very sweet look, then says "this will hurt a bit, but please bear with it for a moment."

After wowing him with her moves and looks, and without giving him the time to react, Reisen moves like a blur with that knife held on her right hand.

Ail winces, then groans in pain when he feels a stinging hot-cold sensation on the back of his neck, holds himself where cold and heat meet, and quickly realizes he is bleeding. "What the hell? What did you do to me!?"

The lilac haired girl takes a bloodstained chunk of hair from the back of his head and places it inside a plastic bag, seals the thing before pocketing it, then smiles while shedding tears when looking at him. "Now I have my proof."

"I... was ordered by Eirin to murder you and give her proof of your death in order to be reinstated as her apprentice; and I was thrilled with the idea... at first, that is."

She gives the shocked boy a sudden hug, making him feel all levels of fear and awkwardness until he stops feeling the murderous vibes from her, then feels soothed as she passes her hand on the wound on the back of his neck; and after releasing him she happily says "there, that cut should heal in a few minutes, and now that I am _positive_ you are truly you, I just can't kill you anymore."

"That other Ail the gate guardian killed; **that's** the bastard I would have gladly murdered. **You**, on the other hand, are the one from before the marriage; so sweet and kind, a bit smart yet dense, but more importantly, humble and respectful."

Reisen holds him tight, then gives him a kiss that only Sanae would give him, and even though he really tries to break free, it is as if his strength is nothing against hers.

When the deed is done, they both gasp for air after she releases him, then he understandably shouts "are you mad!? Don't you ever do that again! I love you as a friend, nothing more!"

Udonge giggles out loud after enjoying his reaction, then playfully says "you're just afraid your girlfriend will kill you. But don't worry; we can keep all of this here in this world. Your shrine maiden will never have to know a thing."

"That's not the point," barks the blushing boy before stammering while looking for something to say; yet he never finds the right words at all.

She greatly enjoys his reaction until the very end, and that's when her smile becomes filled with concern and fright. She waves her left arm in the air and says "goodbye sweet Ail. Please, don't ever lose yourself again. Your real you is just so cute and nice. I hope the real me out there manages to tease you like I have. She will really like it."

"Now wait just a minute," exclaims the startled boy while pointing. He is now holding his finger in mid air while his mouth is left open because of the words that could never leave it, seeing as the intended target for them is no longer there.

Ail wonders if this is some sort of mechanism of the dream world, or if Reisen had hit him with her Lunatic Eyes again. He won't be able to know for sure, but he won't look for the answer.

He turns around to gaze toward his true goal; the Moriya Shrine, and begins his run to it, thinking about what may await him there, and what will happen when he finally escapes the dream world.

* * *

Anilan reaches the first of many large red gates that stand just before the main grounds of the shrine, but he stops his advance and stands in front of said gates while staring at them with great interest.

After studying them carefully he touches the right side of the first gate. Nothing happens and he sighs with relief, and so begins walking while saying to himself "maybe it was just my imagination."

He isn't even sure when, but he's now being gripped by a giant hand made of stone, and it's tightening its grip so much he can feel his bones cracking under the pressure.

He grunts when trying to escape and almost manages to loosen an arm when Suwako grabs his chin and forces him to look at her darkly smiling face. "So, you really thought I was just gonna let you walk into my home, didn't you? You're pretty stupid, boy."

"No Suwako-sama," pleas the boy with great effort; "I'm not the Ail you know! I'm different! I'm GOOD!"

She clenches her hand around his chin, threatening to break it and causing him to cry in pain, and with a satisfied smile she says "good, huh? Were you 'good' when you took Kanako away from us? Your marrying Reimu almost drove my Sanae mad, but taking Kanako was too dirty, Anilan."

She grabs his neck and squeezes tight, cutting off his air, and yet he manages to grunt "I. would never. do... That was. NegaAil!"

The blonde's grip loosens up and allows him to breathe, yet her face remains cold and dark as she looks into his eyes; and that's when her own fill with curiosity.

She narrows her eyes while inspecting him thoroughly, then suddenly says "do you remember what you did to that Fairy of Spring that liked you so much? That cute blonde creature that would look for you ever spring?"

Fear fills the boy's eyes. He knows this will all lead to a new unwanted memory, and Suwako can see it as clear as day, yet remains cold to him.

"No, please, I don't want to see that!" Right on cue, the memories start rushing into his mind, and all he can do is watch with his inner eye as the terrible dream memory becomes his own.

He can see himself flying after the distressed fairy as she tries to lose him in the Youkai Forest.

He shoots her with a laser that hits her inner left thigh and forces her to crash head-first against a thick tree, then he sees himself on top of her in a matter of seconds.

Before long, he's ripping her shirt off and cooing in surprise at the sight of her pink undershirt that fails to hide the fact that this fairy's body seems a little more mature than the rest.

He reaches for her chest as she begs for him to stop through her sobs. He grips her undergarment regardless of her begging-

**"STOOOOOOP!** Please stop; I don't want to see anymore!" He screams desperately before his tears begin to roll down his cheeks.

The boy raises a pitiable face stained with tears at the surprised goddess, whose chest feels incredibly light at the sight she sees, and in a soothingly warm tone she shushes the boy and says "so you were telling the truth."

Before Ail can ask, she continues "don't worry, I saved Lily before you were able to do anything her."

The stone hand releases the boy before burying itself back under the ground, Suwako soothes his body and throat just by focusing her powers on him, then sighs and says "so the vile Ail is dead. It was about time, if you ask me."

The boys face gets filled with confusion, yet, after one last sniffle, he asks the right question. "So, you know; about me, this dream, and my goals here?"

The goddess nods once, and instead of the fury he saw in her eyes, he is now greeted by painful knowledge behind a fake smile.

"What's wrong? What else did _he_ do? ...You can tell me; I think I can take it!"

The blonde girl shakes her head and scoffs once, then says "I know why you're here, and I have to tell you now, even my other me doesn't know how else you can get out; other than with help from the outside."

Ail lets his arms drop and flop in front of himself before sighing hopelessly and saying "so it's pointless. Breaking my promise to Yukari won't help. I should turn back now and just..."

Suwako slaps him across the face and angrily scolds "just what; give up and resign to your fate, is that what you were going to say!?"

She is now the same size as he, even though she still looks like a child, and holds him by his shirt. "Ail, because of you and this trial of sorts that you're going through, I was able to be with a sane Sanae, an innocent Budou, and a lively Kanako once more! This experience has given me hope that, somehow, I can get them back in this world too!"

"Anilan, do not give up on yourself! Do _not_ give up; for those girls! They are waiting for you out there."

There is a long pause between them, and the little goddess regains her child-like stature, and speaking more calmly continues "now I cannot guarantee that you'll find any way to wake up up there, but... perhaps the shock..."

Her voice trails off as she continues speaking to herself, then the curious boy asks "what are you talking about?"

Suwako sighs as she looks at him with pity, places her hand on his shoulder, then says "I'm not supposed to interfere, but... Ail; remember at all times that this is a dream. What you will find over there are not the real thing; but remember that the other Ail hurt us all greatly. Be! prepared! for the worst!"

The dense boy closes his eyes and shakes his head, and then opens them to find that Suwako is gone. He is now left facing the many gates leading toward the shrine.

It takes him a while to recover his senses, bearing, and more importantly, his purpose and courage, and as he restarts his run to the Moriya Shrine, he can't help but wonder what he will find there that even Yukari warned him about so strongly.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Moriya Shrine, in front of the open doors to the living quarters, little Budou stands right where the sun shines brightest on that early morning.

It appears that the snow is all gone, yet it's not spring just yet, so the little bat youkai is just warming herself up, however, her face appears serene, yet her eyes appear to be full of rage.

Sanae, who wears a pink shirt with short sleeves and knee-long jeans, walks out of the living room, walks to the little bat, smiles and rubs her head, then silently sits next to her to soak up on some sun rays as well.

The wind priestess suddenly starts to sob and cry while holding her chest, and Budou quickly turns, wraps her arms and wings around the girl, and coos as she tries to comfort the human goddess. "It's alright Mama-Sanny, Budou-chan is here. She won't leave you."

Upon a closer look, Sanae's skin is as pale as Remilia's, her hair looks a bit dirty and unkempt, and there's something obviously wrong with the way she's looking around; as if expecting something to happen.

"Sanae? Budou? What's the matter? Are you girls alright?"

Ail's voice. It penetrates the girls' ears and all manner of emotions run rampart through their hearts; some more painful than the ones before; and without saying a word, the two girls quiet down and glare frighteningly towards the source of said voice.

The boy gulps and takes a step back when those disturbing faces lock on to him, and he repeats in his mind "_you stupid idiot, why did you speak!?_"

He's just about to take another step back when Budou growls "you're not going anywhere... disgusting and vile..." she shudders, "papa."

The little bat stretches her wings and stands, generates an orb of sound and green energy on the palm of her hand; strong enough to break a hole in Yukari's stomach; and in a dark and cold voice she says "you made a terrible mistake in coming here, you. No matter; that only means we can have our revenge now!"

She snarls when she jumps at the boy; her face looks like that of a ravenous youkai ready to mince its prey to bits; but then she yelps and falls to the ground, twitching as if her body is being electrified repeatedly.

Sanae has placed an amulet on the little bat's back to stop her in her tracks, and with a serene smile and tone of voice, she says "there there Budou; it's not polite to kill guests to the shrine with your claws."

Ail wants to help the little bat and remove that amulet, thinking that doing that could help score some good points for him, however, when looking at Sanae's face, he himself seems to freeze in place out of fear.

There is a sadistic smile cursing those lips as the ominous, glowing green eyes keep locked on him as if there was nothing else there. In just a few short seconds, Ail is sorry for breaking his promise to Yukari, understands there is no answer to his problem at this shrine, and realizes there's no turning back now.

The wind priestess chuckles sweet and darkly as she stands up, unsheathes a ceremonial knife from a small scabbard hidden on the waistband of her jeans, and still smiling she speaks softly and darkly.

"Anilan, my sweet, you came back, at last. Do you know how much you made me cry? Do you realize how much I've suffered since you married that... thing? You hurt me so much, but now you're back, and I can share my pain with you, my dear, sweet Ail-kun."

The dense boy want to run as fast and far as he can, but he also wants to help Sanae regain her senses. He doesn't want to see her like this either way, but it seems that his only real option is to try to tell her the truth; as farfetched as it may seem.

He lifts his hands defensively and exclaims "wait-wait, Sanae-ch- listen to me! I am not the Ail that married Reimu! I am another Ail; a good one! Please believe me! I am going through a trial and am looking for a way back home! Th-the Ail you know is dead, I swear!"

The girl stops moving and straightens up, raises her left brow, then starts to giggle.

The seemingly sweet giggle quickly becomes dark and terrifying, it slowly evolves into a bone-chilling cackle, and then she stops and darkly hisses "that's even _better_. Instead of killing the Ail I used to love, I can kill an Ail I **_don't_** love at all and feel EQUALLY satisfied without any pain!"

She raises her armed arm and her left arm to shoulder height and with a happy, frightening and unhinged tone she says "I win no matter what! Let's share my pain now."

The dense boy raises his defenses as fast as he can by activating his weapon of light, while the insane girl he calls his girlfriend outside the hellish dream world stomps her way to him, panting and cackling as if she's enjoying herself greatly.

* * *

Meanwhile, at Mayohiga, Mima strangles Yukari and shakes her violently while shouting "IT! IS! NOT! WORKING! We have to try something else!"

She releases the blonde woman and allows her to nurse her throat, and after the inevitable retaliation from the gap youkai; via danmaku from every possible angle and dimension known to her; Yukari says "then we're just going to have to go straight to him!"

Mima shakes off the burns and magically restores the shredded clothes with a few waves of her hand, then angrily replies "you should have said that from the start! Let's pack up and leave this place! That child needs us!"

"Child?!" Shikieiki's questioning and concerned tone comes with great surprise. She continues "Mima, just like Yuyuko, you HAVE to cut those attachments with that boy! That is very dangerous for you!"

"Attachments!? What attachments?" The supposedly-evil spirit tries to hide the fact that she's worried to the death for the boy by pouting while looking away.

She crosses her arms under her chest and continues "I just owe the kid a great deal! I thought of placing a failsafe in case something like this happened, yet I didn't! I just feel uncomfortable owing him! Now STOP LOOKING AT ME!"

Yukari's mouth floats inside one of her gaps around Mima's ears and whispers "detach, or disappear. Those are your choices."

The green haired woman remains silent while looking at the floor, while the blonde gap woman speaks. "Now ladies remember, what we are about to do is the last resort, and as such, it has many dangers which could harm him greatly."

The Yama nods once and serenely says "we have been brought to a dead-end. I see no other option. Still, it will take us a few days to get there, even with your help, Yukari."

Mima sighs to let the other two women know she's calmed down, then says "it's a shame Yuka refused to get involved, or this would have been a whole lot easier with her help."

"What's done is done," comments Yukari. She takes her parasol from Ran's hands, walks to the door exiting her living room, looks back at the two guests, and says "now come on ladies, our dear, sweet knight in shining armor awaits for us princesses to rescue him."

Shikieiki can't help but giggle after that, while Mima rolls her eyes and just floats as quickly as she can.

The door closes after Shikieiki, and Ran remains on her knees while she hears the evil spirit saying "okay, cut the act, you're both as worried as I am; admit it!"

The girls groan and moan uncomfortably for a moment, then the evil spirit claps her hands and exclaims "HA! I knew it! You two owe me an ice cream!"

The nine-tailed fox's ear twitches when she hears a loud smack from Eiki's Rod of Remorse, then sighs while the Yama says "what manner of disgusting things are you craving? You should be ashamed of asking for something as-"

Yukari interrupts the speech by saying "it's a frozen treat from the outside world."

After a long pause, the gap youkai continues "honestly, as Yama, you should knows these things."

"I'm sorry," cries Eiki; apparently aiming her apologies at Mima. "I've just been so busy lately; I just can't keep up with everything!"

* * *

Ail ducks to avoid Sanae's knife, shuts his weapon of light off, then jumps away from the giggling girl and shouts "that's enough Sanae! I don't want to hurt you!"

The girl drools a bit when she giggles, then says "what a coincidence! I don't want to hurt my Ail-kun either! I just want him dead! DEAD! AHAHAHA~"

She drops on her hands and feet like a beast, and then quickly pounces toward the boy, aiming the knife at his chest. The dense one manages to jump away just in time, and takes flight to avoid that knife again, but still won't shoot.

He looks at his feet after realizing the flight restrain has lifted, but disregards this and looks at the green haired girl. "Sanae, please, I just need to find my way home!"

Sanae raises her knife as if it were her old gohei and cackles manically, then shouts "BUT YOU ARE HOME! You belong here with MEEEE~"

She swings her knife in front of herself and draws what looks like several crosses in mid air, then her Esoterica - Nine Syllable Stab spell activates, and being free of the spell card rules the spell has become lethal.

Its net-like beams are glowing intense red, the large chain-like bullets around it appear to be twice their normal size, and Ail swears he can see actual knives spinning inside of where the beams join.

Sanae giggles as if she's being tickled by her Ail-kun's hands, then says "don't resist sweetie, or it will only hurt much, MUCH! Let my love tear you to pieces, like your betrayal did to my own little heart!"

Before he can react, he finds himself pressing his arms and legs against his body as tightly as he can so he can spear through the thin holes on the net of beams that fly at high speeds toward him.

Now, more than ever, he wants to turn around and run away as far as he can, but now that the human goddess has gone and ignored the spell card rules so blatantly, he's not sure if running is even an option anymore.

The next nets are coming, and they have those chain-like bullets swarming all over. He won't have another choice but to attack.

"Sanae, please forgive me!" He focuses as much power as he can on his hands, puts his wrists together and stretches both hands as far as he can, then shoots three focused orbs of pure orange energy at the girl's feet.

She's successfully blown away, and now Anilan can focus on spearing through the rest of the spell without having to worry about more nets forming up.

He flies through the first one, veers up to avoid some bullets, passes through the next and shoots the concentration of bullets in front of him, and then he moves toward the next net.

Just when his shoulders are adjacent to the next set of beams, one of the missed chain bullets does a sudden turn and wraps itself around his legs, then pulls him down, forcing him to go through seven of those searing hot beams and to get stabbed by one of those knives hidden where the beams join.

"What the-? C-can't... move. Can't. breathe." He grunts and gasps quickly when he tries to move, and even with the knife that was stuck on his left knee is gone, the paralyzing effects are still there.

Ail tries to move again, struggles to breathe, then groans immediately after he hears metal breaking through flesh and bone. Sanae has rushed to his side and has stabbed him on the shoulder.

She picks him up and coos as she places his back against her chest, pulls the knife out of his shoulder, then coos and hums while touching his wound and poking it hard.

"You know;" she sniffles, "I was so hurt when you married that bitch Reimu. I thought you loved me more than anything, but I guess I was wrong. I was too ugly for you to love."

She combs his hair and caresses his face with her bloodstained hand while humming a dark, yet sweet tune, claws the wound on his shoulder to make more blood flow out of it, then darkly hisses "it hurt! It hurt so much, Ail-kun!"

She starts to cry as she rubs his face, and sweetly shushes him while smearing his cheeks with his own blood after he starts to breathe through his mouth and grunt to fight the pain.

He manages to grab her hand, breathes hard through his mouth, then grunts "Sanae, please stop this. I... I don't want to fight with you!"

As if not even listening to him, she takes the knife again, traces it around his other arm, and sweetly says "I wonder what you would taste like if I cooked you and ate you like youkai do. You would be inside of me forever and ever, you know. If... I did that." She giggles.

The boy starts to cry "please, Sanae, stop this! I beg of you, stop, or... I will have to defend myself."

She lifts the knife as high as her arm will allow her, her face becomes dark and ominous as a vicious toothy grin breaks through her lips, then she hisses "please scream as loud as you can before you die, my dear sweet Ail-kun."

Anilan clenches his eyes shut, lifts his left arm, and shoots Sanae at point-blank range.

As soon as she yelps and backs away, he rolls as far away from her as he can, gets on his left knee, nurses his wounded shoulder, and with tears in his eyes he says "I didn't want to do this, but you pushed me to this! Please forgive me Sanae-chan!"

The girl stands up, grunts angrily while dusting her pants and shirt, then furiously says "you caused me more pain? You DARE cause me more pain after tearing my heart! You are going to pay for that, Ail-kun! Just for that, I will cut you to pieces WITHOUT LOVE; **YOU DISGUSTING YOUKAI**!"

* * *

Ail jumps and rolls left to avoid a flurry of deadly sealing charms, then responds with white laser beams that miss Sanae by mere inches.

She cackles after the lasers vanish, then happily declares "my Ail-kun can't harm me! My sweet, you **do** know what you did. Ah, but it's just too late for you to repent..."

She shoots red spinning stars at him and cuts a bit of his arm, drawing a tiny bit of blood before cheering "you already hurt me enough! You have to pay for my pain, even if you _are_ another Ail-kun. ...You know, you also hurt Budou a lot."

She moves her hips right to avoid an orange orb, twirls further right to avoid more blue and white orbs, then giggles, shoots large blue stars that cut trees in half as if they were butter, then happily says "I'll only half-kill you so she can kill the rest. What do you think, sweetheart? Isn't that a wonderful idea?"

The boy roars as he takes flight, swings his arm while activating a staff of light that sends a yellow energy wave at the girl, then says "no Sanae, nobody will die here today! I'll just tire you out and get out of here, pronto!"

The girl takes the slicing energy right to the face with a smile, giggles innocently and darkly while keeping her unhinged eyes fixed on the boy, then says "oh Ail-kun, when will you learn? When it comes to hunting wicked youkai like you, I can go on for **_days and days_**before I need a change and some food."

She lifts her bloodied knife like she would her gohei, then hourglass-shaped fruit start popping out of the ground in large numbers, and exploding with ridiculous force.

Hidden in the already sharp bits of the fruit are tiny red searing bullets that leave burn marks on the boy's skin, even though he's not even close to getting hit by them.

He yelps and holds the burnt skin after deactivating his weapon again, and now finds himself being cooked alive by bullets that aren't even aimed at him, but keep surrounding him.

"I have no choice. I'll have to use a spell..." He closes his eyes to focus, and then all of a sudden water appears out of the sky and rages toward the exploding fruit and their owner, soothing the boy's skin as its gentle and cooling waves rub his burnt skin.

The waves with concealed bullets under its raging watery body quickly make their way to Sanae, who laughs out loud like some maniac while taking the attack with open arms and in complete disregard for her own safety.

The water and bullets get inside her mouth just before she's swept off her feet by the force of the crushing waves, and that's when the dense boy desperately calls for her. What he gets in return sends a debilitating and powerful chill to his spine and knees.

"Ail? HELP!" Her gurgled screams for help sends endless jolts of guilt, anxiety and fear to the boy, and now all he wants to do is stop his spell and tend to her, but he is met with a terrible realization; his spell is out of control.

"SANAE!" he calls with dread and despair behind his voice. He tries to run to her, but the endless rushing waters prevent him from budging an inch while it soothes and heals him from the knives and burn wounds, while it does the complete opposite for the girl.

Ail screams Sanae's name in his despair to end the spell the moment he sees her blood staining those furious waves, but despite all his efforts, his kicking, screaming and punching of the water, the spell doesn't end until his body is fully healed.

The moment the spell releases him, he braves the remaining raging rapids and goes straight to where he last saw Sanae's blood, and quickly finds her holding on to a small sacred log lodged on a rock.

She lifts her head, opens her eyes just slightly enough to see, then weakly says "A-Ail-kun? I'm so sorry."

Anilan painfully drops on his knees and picks her up by her shoulders, rests her back against his chest and desperately whispers "no-no-no-no, it's alright. Shh, don't talk now! I'll heal you! I will; just hold on!"

Her head flops back and her hands drop like lead right there and then, and Ail remains as he was, frozen while looking at the dead girl on his hands.

A cold and dark sensation takes his heart as he gives the girl a loving embrace, hoping she will react. He cannot feel his tears, he cannot hear himself sobbing and screaming, all his consciousness is allowing him to accept and retain is the fact that Sanae has died because of an out-of-control spell he himself casted.

He isn't sure when exactly he placed her cold cheeks against his own, but his tears have both their cheeks soaked by now, and somehow, for some reason, his heart is settling, although it is doing so as painfully as it can; or at least that's how he thinks it.

Guilt eats away at his heart and mind, while at the same time he tries to think "_this is a dream; this is a dream; this is a dream..._"

He now sees a pair of clawed feet in front of himself, and then raises his sight to meet with Budou's glowing aquamarine eyes as she whispers "mama? Mama Sanny?"; and watches as she winds her left arm to the right.

The strike to his face is too quick for him to register he's been struck until he's seven feet away on the ground.

"YOU KILLED MY MAMA SANNYYYYYY! YOU KILLED HEEEEEER!" He watches as the little bat holds the shrine maiden's body in a tight embrace and cries her little soul out, but then he is met with a cold and deathly glare from the little youkai's now-red eyes.

Budou places Sanae's body on the ground, kisses the girl's forehead, then stands straight while glaring at the boy and says "you hurt her heart, you hurt MY heart too; you took gramma Kanako away, you pained me and mama Sanny many more times; and now you take her from me."

A frightening dark aura swirls around the little girl as her body begins to grow at a slow, but steady pace, and her voice seems to mature as she continues "I tried not to, papa Ail, but I hate you. I hate you_ so much. **It hurts! MY CHEST HURTS THE MORE I HATE YOU!**_"

He watches in horror as her wings grow, her body matures, her skin takes a dark tone as two little horns grow on her forehead, and the claws on her hands and feet extend so that her reach is twice as long.

Her old little brown dress breaks as her body increases in size, and now said dress is merely a pair of torn cloths covering her now womanly parts.

Her body matches Sanae's in shape and beauty, but the ominously dark tone her skin has taken, her new red eyes, her elongated deformed fingers, and her oversized claws and teeth, destroy the image if what should be one of the most beautiful creatures in Gensokyo.

Ail gulps to try and manage his heart, which seems to want to break free of him out of fear; whether by his mouth or through his ribs; then he says "Budou. Budou, I'm so sorry. I never... ever wanted to hurt y-"

"SILENCE" she roars, then she dashes forward and swings her new claws straight at his face.

* * *

A few days later, Mima, Yukari and Shikieiki arrive to the deepest and most secretive segments of Mugenkan, and the Yama and gap youkai produce their resetting machines in order to light the long room.

"Stop showing off," complains the evil spirit as she looks at the wall to her left, then flips three common light switches, lighting up the seemingly endless corridor of white doors and white floors.

The girls pocket their respective devices, then with a stern face Eiki says "now search for his door, and make SURE to make no noise! He must be properly shielded when we wake him."

The girls nod, and then all three start moving to the left of the corridor while Yukari says "I kind of wonder what's going on inside that world. These stupid little machines simply refuse to show anything anymore."

"We can ask him when we wake him," nonchalantly replies Shikieiki after discretely edging the blonde to move forward, and then they hear a light thud and turn their sights to Mima's collapsed form on the clean white floor.

They both call for the green haired woman, but she can't hear a single syllable from them.

Instead she finds herself in a blurry world, where all the color is grey, and even the sun seems to have lost all its shine.

Before she can even question what has happened, she witnesses Ail running for his life.

The left half of his shirt has been torn, keeping the terrible gashes on his torso open to plain view, and what's left of his pants lets her see the many thin cuts on his legs and feet.

She tries speaking to him, but her mute voice only causes small ripples to form for a second before disappearing as quickly as they appear.

She tries reaching for him, but realizes she has no body. Instead, she's just a little invisible orb of light flickering against the glimmering shine of the grey sun.

He can hear Ail yelp with fright before running off and screaming "stop! Please, stop! No! I won't fight you!"

The beautiful, yet terrifying figure of Budou appears out of the shadows and claws a new set of gashes on the boy's back, then roars after pouncing after him.

"AIL!" Mima reaches for him again, holds him tight, but quickly realizes she's holding Shikieiki, and that said Yama is trying to push her away and calm her down.

"That's it, just listen to my voice." When the evil spirit has stopped trying to crush Eiki with a hug, the judge asks "alright, Mima, if you can, tell us what did you see?"

The evil spirit turns her blue eyes left and right, trying to understand what happened, then she looks at Yukari, gasps, then says "he went there!"

"What the HELL did he go there for?-" Before Yukari can curse and argue with the wind, Mima continues "it's much worse than we imagined it could be. He's lost his senses! I... I think we lost him."

The three women remain silent, looking at each other uncomfortably while wondering what they should do next.

Mima breaks free from Shikieiki's hold, stands up, then walks forward with a determined look on her face.

The remaining two girls look at each other, nod, then walk after the evil spirit.

* * *

Meanwhile, inside the dream world's Moriya Shrine, a bloody spring ruins what should be a peaceful sight of green and small colors of spring.

Ail is alive, however at first glance it would appear that he is dying. His skin is as pale as a ghost's and there's dried up gashes all over him, the only thing left of his shirt is the band around his neck, blood stains his face and torso, and on his lap, which happens to be covered by tattered pieces of what used to be his black pants, he has the heads of Sanae and Budou resting on him.

Both girls lay stiff on him while he brushes their cold hairs with his shivering fingers, and hums "Shanghai Teahouse" while he does.

His golden, bloodshot eyes appear to be lost as he looks forward without blinking once, sobs when a bit of blood dribbles out of the beautifully monstrous bat youkai's mouth, and then his song ends.

He chuckles softly, and then whispers "this... was a dream... but now it's real... I killed you, that's why you won't wake. Heh-heh; I killed you both, and I am so, so sorry for it."

He sighs and thinks "_it's all just a dream; a very bad dream,_" then begins to hum "Septet For Dead Princess" while he continues combing the girls' heads.

From the distance, Suwako watches in pain, unable to do anything for him, while at the same time wanting to destroy him for taking away everything from her.

She sighs long and hard, closes her eyes, and slowly her body turns transparent.

She giggles to herself, looks at her hand as she slowly vanishes, then whispers to herself "he's not bad, just plain stupid."

Unknown to her, he's been looking at her the whole time, and now he cries as he watches her vanish, but in his desperate attempt to retain his sanity, and for her sake as well, he does something surprising.

"Lady Moriya, your grace, may your divinity get me home. Bless these spirits as they make their way through the river-" He whispers this prayer, mumbles a bit more, and in a mere second, Suwako's body becomes solid, grows to that of a gorgeous adult woman, and her aura glows so brightly, it becomes physical.

With sudden knowledge of what she must do, she flies to Ail, embraces him, and lifts him off the ground, letting the bodies of the dead girls make a quick thud on the grass.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the endless white corridors, Mima speedily walks forward without pause, followed quickly by Shikieiki and Yukari.

The spirit is keeping her face as straight as she can, but the girls behind her can see her anxiety is killing her from within.

The evil spirit suddenly speaks. "I can see it; every time I blink I see him! He's sitting on the grass with his back against a rock, and on each leg he has the bodies of those girls he loves so much."

She speeds up before the girls can ask while continuing "he keeps humming songs and combing their hairs. His mind is at the point of completely breaking. We have to get him out any way we can!"

Just then, the path before them flashes, and all three girls find themselves in the large ball room with the misty soft, white floors, the ivory columns, the pure white ceiling, and the endless white doors with light colorings.

They are now standing between dimensions. Not really caring for the many doors around them Mima makes her way to the white door with the hint of sky blue tone, then places her hand on it.

She looks back at the girls and demands "hurry, get those damned machines out and use them!"

Shikieiki is the first to draw out her own circular device and presses the button, followed promptly by Yukari, who does the same with her triangular device.

The two devices jump out of the girls' hands, join together in mid air, then smash themselves against the door. Nothing else happens after that.

"Wha-?" Mima's eyes widen with surprise and shock when she sees their very last resort has failed.

She repeatedly punches the door with all her strength while shouting "why! the! fuck! did! I! make! this! sealing! spell! so! **_SECURE!?_**"

The whiteness of the room slowly turns reddish, and the soft mist on the floor turns hot and uncomfortable.

Shikieiki grabs the evil spirit by the shoulder and pulls her away from the door using great force, and with said spirit somewhat subdued on her feet, she scolds "stop your rampage you idiot, or we'll get kicked out of here forever! Is that what you want?"

The green haired spirit clenches her teeth and snarls, then holds her head and grips her hair to keep herself from going after that door again, and then speaks with a cracking angry tone. "But he's in there! We have to get him out! Ugh; this is all my fault!"

Yukari opens her fan and chuckles as the room slowly returns to its peaceful state, then, after everything is calm and the spirit is a little more relaxed, she points to the door, giggles, and says "well, well, it appears someone forgot to pick up her own little device."

The green haired girls look to the blonde with confused stares, then turn their faces toward the door.

Where the two other devices had stuck themselves in, right on front of them is a small yellow spark that grows to the size of a baseball.

The spark explodes, sending little sparks of its own to snow their way to the floor, and now a star-shaped device with a tiny button underneath is floating there, waiting for Mima to pick it up.

She stands up, hesitates for a moment, then suddenly rushes toward the little yellow star.

The moment she picks it up, her face brightens up and says "the world's shut down! He's not there anymore!"

Both Yukari and Eiki give her very worried looks, yet it takes her a few seconds to realize what she just said, then yelps and says "wait, does that mean he's gone with it!?"

Without waiting for an answer, she presses the tiny button on the back of her device, then it immediately starts spinning in the air.

Mima throws a little green spark at it while muttering "hurry up", and the star makes its way to the other two devices, literally stabbing itself on top of them and making one deafening bang in the process.

With the star surrounding the other two devices, it now seems as though the girls in the room are now being watched by the All-Seeing Eye, which happens to be sealed inside the star.

The door suddenly bangs open and smoke flows from within, hiding a person behind it.

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail and Budou were created by Willie G.R.

Ail's spell cards were created by Willie G.R.

MAR 29, 2013

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

Me: Yup, I did it. I finished the chapter. Now, to play more videogames.

Yuka: Um, look, kid, I know you've lost interest in this, but shouldn't you at least finish what you started?

Satori: You do have that crossover you left in limbo for far longer than this fic. Willie, get OFF your damned butt, stop playing Skylanders, and GET TO WORK!

Me: Yeah, I know. And it's odd you're not trying to depress me or humiliate me, Satori.

Satori: I already did.

Yuka: Look, ignore her and just focus on making another moment with me and Ayalina. I want that woman so bad *drools*.

Me and Satori: *silent stare*

Yuka: For sparring! **FOR SPARRING!**

Me: Sure. Bah, anyways, you're right, but videogames are so awesome.

Satori: It's a good thing you lack money to get those.

Me: *pissed* Go to hell.

Satori: But we already ARE home.

Me and Yuka: ...


	13. Chapter 13

The smoke from within the dream room continues to flow out and blind everyone of the figure standing under the doorway.

Mima isn't going to take any more of it, so she waves her arms in front of herself and forces the smoke to split with a powerful magic gust.

On the doorway; standing proudly while looking down at the three girls before him; Ail snarls softly before rudely scoffing towards the evil spirit.

Mima smiles and happily says "Ail, you're alri-huh?" and that's when she notices his red eyes and ghostly appearance, snarls as she prepares a black orb on her hand, then asks "what the hell are _you_ doing here?"

Nega-Ail snarls softly again, then says "what the hell do you think you are doing? Hurry up!"

Shikieiki wants to ask him how he got out of the dream world, but he becomes a flash, and then morphs into Reimu, who still has her death wound on her chest.

She waves her arms around and smacks her thighs to show her despair as she says "what are you waiting for!? He needs you!" Right after saying that, she becomes a small white beam that zips straight back into the room.

Yukari realizes what the dreams mean and heads toward the room, although Mima quickly catches on and rushes to beat the gap youkai inside.

She rushes past the smoke, scans the room with her eyes as fast as she can, and then she finds the dense boy hugging his knees and trembling behind the last bed of flowers in the room.

"Ail?" she calls softly, not wanting to frighten him or scare him into a fight.

She slowly floats toward him with Yukari and Eiki behind her; though they stay five steps away all the time; then softly calls "Ail, are you alright? It's me, Mima."

The boy begins to tremble harder, stammers incoherently, then finally, sounding despaired and frightened out of his wits, he replies "p-p-please... I just want to get home. I... I don't want to fight anymore. Please... please just let me go. Let me go home! M-Moriya-sama help me!"

The evil spirit listens to him sob and is reminded of when Marisa was a young child.

She remembers the little girl would cry whenever she got scared or frustrated, and for some reason she didn't understand, she would embrace the child and comfort her with coos and purrs while combing her hair with soft strokes.

Without realizing it, she's doing that very same thing for Ail, while the trembling boy taps her arm and face with his finger before whispering "you're real. Mima is real."

Shikieiki takes this chance to step forward and say "but Ail, you are _home_. You are wide awake, and no longer bound to the dream."

Yukari wants nothing more than to take video evidence of the supposedly evil spirit and the boy right now, but even she can't bring herself to do such a thing, and smiles while casually saying "the trial is over. You passed with flying colors."

The trembling boy suddenly gasps and returns Mima's embrace; desperately looking for something safe to hold on to before speaking. "B-but Budou... Sanae! Reimu and Flandre, and _Remilia!_ They all died! They're all dead! I killed them! **I-I-I killed them!**"

The evil spirit grips the back of his neck until he stops squeezing her, then with a stern and motherly tone she says "listen careful Anilan Inmodo Leuch, son of Ayalina Leuch Higani; **you passed your test**. Their deaths weren't _your_ failures, but the world's own. You passed the test, and you are back home."

Yukari chuckles mischievously, spreads her arms widely, and then says "if you want proof that you are back, notice that **_we_** are here with you, and we are not trying to kill you."

Shikieiki looks suspiciously at the gap youkai, but disregards the suspicious feeling to look at the boy without frightening him, then says "and all your friends, the Moriya Shrine Maiden, and your youkai daughter are all just fine. They are all waiting for your return."

It takes a few more coos and hair combs from Mima, but Ail finally relaxes his grip, his sobs lessen, and lifting his head to look at Eiki, it appears he's realizing he's really free from that world.

He looks around until he spots Yukari smiling at him, then the blonde says "welcome back child. And just so you can feel honored and proud of yourself, know that I have decided to teach you math myself, so that you can blunder less when messing with borders you shouldn't be messing with."

The boy looks up at her with puppy eyes before gulping, then after some soft stammers he manages to ask "but... didn't Ran teach me all of that already?"

The woman opens her fan to cover her sly grin, and says "not what _I_ know, dear child."

He nods twice and thanks her, looks around himself and taps Mima's back to let her know he's now feeling better, and thus she lets him go to look at his face, and it not very pleased with what she sees.

The boy's skin is slightly discolored, his hair is messier than usual, the dark circles around his eyes look frightening, and his clothes are very rumpled.

She smiles as she combs his hair a little while helping him stand up, then says "there, you see; nothing to worry about. You're back home, you're fine, and you are back to your roots. So, no hard feelings, right?"

Ail smiles at her, sighs, then shakes his head and says "n-no, not at all. I must thank you all. The experience was... horrible; but I understand my acting without thinking was leading me somewhere terrible."

He begins to tremble as though struggling to keep his body standing while smiling, and says "I truly thank you, from the bottom of my heart."

Shikieiki and Yukari both lift their respective items of choice to cover their mouths while Mima fails to hide her worry, and asks "Ail, are you sure you're alright!? If you want, we can bury those memories deep-"

Anilan lifts her hand while giving all three women a determined stare, then says "this terrible experience has opened my eyes widely. If you were to make me forget even the slightest detail, it could all become undone."

His legs twitch so violently he ends up falling on the nearest bed of flowers, but remains speaking with determination. "I thank you for the offer, but please, let me handle these. I'll flood them with new happy memories with my Sanae, my Budou, and all my friends. I can do this."

The girls give each other some estranged stares, then Shikieiki nods once and says "alright; but if you ever change your mind, you can speak with any one of us. We'll be ready to help you as we can. Just keep in mind that your choice may complicate what we can do."

The boy stands up once more, bows politely, then smiles and says "you'll see; everything will be just fine!"

* * *

Later, at the Forest of Magic, at Ail's house, on that warm and beautiful spring morning, Lily White lands behind Budou and Sanae; whom have just exited the house; and says "it's spring! Tell Ail!"

The boy lands just behind some bushes in front of his home and starts looking around himself as though lost and totally disoriented, starts to shake when he looks at the girls and fear takes him, and thinks he should keep away from them, yet takes small cautious steps towards the house while still looking around.

Budou turns around with an irritated face, sighs, and irritably says "listen you stupid fairy! Papa is not back yet, so-"

The little bat youkai gasps so loud, she mutes Sanae's own gasp when they place their eyes upon the pale and trembling Ail.

The green haired girl lifts her arm when hesitating to approach the seemingly disoriented boy, and asks "Ail-kun? Sweetheart, are you alright? What happened to you?"

The boy looks at them and mumbles something under his breath, so the three girls rush toward him.

Before any of them can reach him, Phredia pops right out Budou's heart and flies straight toward him, but he drops on his knees, wraps his arms around Sanae, Lily and Budou as soon as they are close; almost crushing Phredia in the hug; and repeats "it's me! I'm back! It's me! I'm back!"

He starts to sob and his tears dampen the girls' hairs, and then he starts to cry "Budou, Lily, Phredia, Sanae-chan, you're alright! I'm so sorry; for everything!"

The four girls manage to glance at each other; Budou changing her sight from Sanae to Lily, then Phredia; then they all manage to wrap a hand around the boy.

He twitches when he feels their fingers on him, thinking they might kill him yet not caring for it, but he relaxes when he feels their warm embrace melting away any fear he may have had instead.

When he's relaxed, Sanae stands up and helps him to stand, wraps his arm around her shoulder, then says "come on sweetheart, let's go inside;" and leads him into the house, followed quickly by Budou, Lily, and Phredia.

Inside the house, the boy is welcomed by the familiar sight of his own home, with the blue furniture and the newly-painted white ceiling and light-blue walls, and not the girly remodeling his mother had done.

The shrine maiden sits him on the new love seat, helps him settle his back against the backrest, then rubs his face and softly asks "Ail, are you alright? You are back home; you know that, right? Do you understand?"

The little bat girl jumps on the free space to the boy's left, hugs his waist, and exclaims "papa, what's wrong? Are you home for good? You won't leave again, right!?"

The dense one suddenly shakes his head, looks at Budou's head before petting her and combing her hair with his hands, lets a questioning gasp escape his lips when looking at Sanae, then he whispers "I really am back. Y-you're not..."

He grabs the girl by the shoulders, and looking frightened he asks "Sanae, nobody had died, right? Kanako is alive and with us, right!? R-Reimu is still the Hakurei Shrine Maiden, _right!?_"

The confused girl looks into his frightened eyes, then says "Ail, nobody we know has died; Kanako is at the shrine, probably drinking sake again; and yes, Reimu is still the Hakurei Maiden."

The boy chuckles, his eyes half-close while he smiles and says "it's alright. I'm really back home. I'm... back home with you!"

He grabs Budou by the head and gives her a kiss on the forehead, holds Lily and Phredia in a crushing hug, then releases them and gives Sanae an equally strong crushing hug, a kiss on the lips, then excitedly says "I'm back home! I'm really out of the dream!"

She grabs hold of his head just as he suddenly winds down to an almost complete stop, sets his head on her lap, and rubs his head while softly saying "Ail-kun, calm down. We can see that 'trial' of yours was very tough on you, so just rest and let us take care of you. ...Honey?"

She waits for a bit for an answer, but is quick to discover the boy has fallen asleep on her lap, and snores softly while enjoying her soft strokes on his head.

Budou jumps off the love seat and walks to the kitchen with Phredia flying next to her, and Lily getting ahead of her, then whispers "I'll go get something to eat. Papa will wake up hungry."

Sanae chuckles, turns her head toward the little bat youkai, and says "make sure those fairies get extra honey. We don't want Ail-kun waking up to a fairy battle now."

The teal haired girl and the two blonde fairies salute the shrine maiden, and then they all rush into the kitchen, where soft arguments over honey can be heard.

In the meantime, Sanae looks down at Ail, coos when stroking the hair around his ear, then whispers "don't worry my sweet, I got you now and I'm not letting go."

Hearing those words, the dense boy smiles and moans while shifting his head, then seems to shut off and let his body truly rest.

* * *

For two days Ail's home becomes a gathering for friends, all eager to welcome the boy back; particularly Ayalina and Yuka, whom showered him with kisses. He still does not understand why Yuka was so glad to see him, and why Kurumi was so horrified of the flower masters.

Hourai's, Shanghai's and Alice's visit were both a surprise, and a constant reminder of what his other self did to them in that dream world. Even with Sanae and Budou there, the puppeteer's visit was mostly awkward.

Ail had to apologize repeatedly, and managed to explain a tiny bit of his experience with them in the dream, though making sure to keep the more uncomfortable details hidden.

On the morning of the third day, he, Budou, Sanae and Lily visit the Myouren Temple, where things get awkward for the boy.

The moment they land on the outer gates of the temple they are greeted by the sight of tense youkai and a handful of anxious humans walking around as though on patrol and fortifying the walls.

"Wh-what going on here?" asks the boy, nervously wondering if his presence has anything to do with what's happening.

They finally spot Kyouko walking alongside a woman who has light brown hair and a pair of dark brown ears on her head, a large, thick raccoon's tail, who wears round glasses, a leaf on her head, and wears an ecru shirt, and a red-grey skirt.

Ail twitches when he sees them, takes two instinctive steps back and bumps against Sanae, then Budou; not knowing what's happening, calls them. "Hey Kyouko, Mamizou!"

They dense one's body stiffens up and gets cold, so the shrine maiden rubs his arms while speaking in a soothing tone. "Calm down sweetie. Everything will be just fine."

The temple girls turn around with dangerous looks on their faces; ready to attack whatever may have called them, but then they see the guests and settle down.

"Oh, it's just you," comments the yamabiko, to which the tanuki adds "oh, sorry about that."

She scratches her head while chuckling uncomfortably and says "you see, Byakuren has everyone on edge over the Taoists, and I'm afraid I have also become rather paranoid. My apologies."

She notices the stiff boy leaning against the blue and white shrine maiden and asks "and who's this fellow?" She looks at Budou and rubs her head while smiling and saying "this wouldn't your 'papa Ail' now, would he?"

The little bat's wings flutter involuntarily as her head is rubbed, then she nods and says "yup; that's him alright!" She turns around to look at the boy and says "that's right papa, you haven't met Mami-chan! She's a very nice, very... um, papa?"

While Kyouko chuckles at the sight, Mamizou smiles uncomfortably, places her hands on her hips, and says "oi, that boy seems a little stiff. Is he gonna be alright?"

Sanae giggles and says "oh, don't mind him. He's just been through some rough waters. Don't worry; I'll take care of this." She immediately gives him a hug and makes sure his face is on her chest, and like ice on fire, the boy's body melts into a more natural and relaxed state.

Ail gives his girl a peck on the lips, a quick "thank you," then turns around, extends his hand, and says "h-hello M-Miss Mamizou. Nice... to meet you."

The tanuki woman shakes his hand using both of hers, and loudly says "nice to meet you too!" She stops for a moment, looks at him in the eyes and says "no need to be so nervous, I won't bite."

Kyouko sighs; secretly recovering from her laughing fit after seeing that dense boy acting like some sort of chicken; then says "come on, let's head inside. Lady Byakuren will be most pleased to see him! Pfff..."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Hakurei Shrine, Marisa Makes a smooth and quiet landing in front of the donation box, dusts herself while looking around, places her right hand on her cheek as she prepares to make her usual call.

Behind the shrine, Reimu watches Rika swing her wooden sword with perfect precision while dancing elegantly around the ample grounds.

They can hear a very loud clang coming from the entrance, and right after the shrine's maid asks "what was that?" the shrine maiden sighs and says "that's the sound of our peaceful time fluttering in the wind."

Rika stares at her mistress and wonders how a metallic sound like that could compare to something fluttering in the wind, but she reserves her confusion and merely follows after her lady, in case her assistance is needed.

What they find is Suzaku standing next to the black and white witch that's crouching on the ground and holding her throbbing head, while a silver washtub as tall as her hat sits to her right.

The blonde lifts her head and smiles, then says "yo, Reimu, Rika. Ugh! W-what's up?" She looks up to the sky and adds "jeez, these things are raining again. Better be careful."

The unamused shrine maiden crosses her arms over her chest and says "well, at least your hard head served you well. That thing looks heavy."

The witch stands up with a smile, picks the washtub up while straightening her hat, then happily says "well what d' ya know! And here I was about to ask you if you had something tall enough to wash my hat in."

Rika's wings flutter as she softly claps her hands together in front of her chest, and says "how fortunate for you, Miss Marisa. The heavens have smiled upon you and granted a desired gift... though in a most peculiar manner."

Marisa puts her hat back on and grins while saying "let it have its moment. I'll get back at it eventually, ze."

While she speaks, Chiaki walks casually to the blonde, slips her hands into the apron's pocket, takes a few coins, and then casually walks away while Reimu gives her an enthusiastic thumbs-up.

The witch stares curiously at her friend and asks "and what's got you so happy all of a sudden?"

The black haired girl coos cutely while holding her hands behind her back and says "oh, I just felt a sudden surge of happiness. Maybe the Hakurei God is happy."

Even Rika is finding that hard to swallow. Regardless, they all smile at each other before the maid raises her hand, silently summons Suzaku to her, and says "come on everyone, let's go have some tea while we wait."

Marisa grins and asks "so he's really coming today? Sweet! I brought my swimsuit just as you asked!"

Reimu sighs as she rolls her eyes, then says "no, that's for tomorrow. Today is just the meeting for the preparations."

The blonde frowns, then says "oh, that's right. Kyo told me it wasn't today. Guess I wasn't payin' attention."

The shrine girls can't help but look half-faced at each other because of their disbelief, but their faces soon turn to surprise when they look back at the witch and see Chiaki folding the black with white polka-dots swimsuit and placing it inside the washtub before walking away.

Marisa raises an eyebrow, shivers when a strong gust whooshes by to reveal the commando state she's in, then she asks "you guys feel that breeze?"

* * *

At one of the Myouren Temple's cozier guest room, Byakuren, Kyouko, Orange, Mamizou and Minamitsu accompany the visiting group.

Lily White has made herself quite comfortable on the Youkhrist's lap; and the owner of said lap doesn't mind at all; while Ail tells them just a little bit of his experience in the dream world.

As he speaks, he fails to notice Shou and Nazrin standing under the doorway behind him, or Ichirin and Unzan watching with interest from the window also behind him.

Although he does fail to notice them, he can feel their presence, though is not sure what it is, and so he ends his tale without mentioning his experience at the other Myouren Temple, the Moriya Shrine, or the many deaths he witnessed.

Byakuren notices his reluctance to continue, and decides against letting it slide, so she makes sure to make eye contact with him when asking "and... that's it? Isn't there something else Ail?"

He knows that she knows he's purposely omitting parts of the story, and so is clear on the fact that hiding the truth will not work, however all he can do is look down and mutter incoherently under his breath.

Sanae quickly holds him tight as if protecting him, scowls at the woman and says "no, don't force him! If he doesn't want to say more, then don't make him!"

Byakuren sighs as she rubs Lily's head and says "but if he keeps that buried inside it's only going to rot him from the core! Please Ail, share with us a little more! Let that pain out."

"_That look in her eyes. She knows what happened! But how?_" The dense boy shivers as this revelation hits him, but there's some comfort in knowing there's someone that might understand what he went through.

He lets his head slump and rubs Sanae's embracing arms for support, then says "I went to the Temple there. I did so many atrocities. Well... my other me did; the one _me_ that almost became real!"

The more he speaks, the harder he shakes, and that makes him feel weaker and weaker, yet he continues "I harmed you Lady Byakuren, to the point that you had lost yourself, and your faith in me! I cursed Miss Nue's throat, I almost killed Mi- Nazrin, _and_ I killed Kogasa!"

He sobs and says "I'm a monster," just before Sanae embraces him lightly and stares daggers at the Youkhrist while saying to him "no, you're not."

Byakuren stands up, placing Lily in Orange's lap, walks over to the boy, kneels when in front of him, then places a gentle hand that's glowing light blue on the back of his neck.

"Let it all out... little brother. Don't bottle it up." As she whispers these words, the boy's sob and shaking diminish, and his girlfriend's gaze softens a great deal.

After he's calmed down enough to lift his gaze toward the gradient haired woman, she rubs the side of his head and says "I'm so sorry Ail, but I couldn't let you bottle that up. Yes, we already knew what had happened. What I didn't know is that you remember everything so vividly."

The boy shivers a bit when sniffling, then says "it was the dream spirits. They interfered; did something to the world that ruined something of it. Because of that... I remember everything that happened, onee-chan."

Both he and Byakuren chuckle softly after he calls her that, while Sanae raises an eyebrow and quickly wraps her arms around the boy while glaring at the woman.

From the doorway, Shou chuckles and says "then if you remember everything, you should be conscious about being free from said world, so why are you still so tense?"

Ail turns around with a terrified look on his face and notices the girls behind him, smiling and waving all friendly-like at him. He even notices Nue hiding behind Shou with a very mischievous grin on her face and still waving her fingers at him.

He feels as though his chest becomes a void that's swallowing and consuming him from within. His skin turns paler than Yuyuko's before breakfast, yet he manages to fight the fear he feels when realizing the girls are surrounding him.

"Sweetheart it's alright," softly coos Sanae. Shou sits with her legs crossed while looking straight into his eyes form the other side of the table and says "nobody is trying to kill you; nobody hates you, nor have you hurt anyone."

Nazrin mimics her master and sits in the same manner while saying "yes, listen to master. Look, we're not raising any alarms or anything, so calm down."

He keeps staring at them with fear that slowly fades away from his eyes as he takes notice of their smiling faces and worried looks; although Nue looks more mischievously curious than worried.

Finally, he lets a sigh escape him, manages a weak smile and a nod, and while the color returns to his skin he says "I'm so sorry everyone; and thank you. Yes, you're right, I'm free from that nightmare... but it's going to take some time for me to take it easy. It was just too much for me, you know; to see my friends hating me so much and d-die... before my eyes."

Byakuren's motherly face as she rubs Ail's head again gives the boy unimaginable comfort as she says "that is alright. If you want, you can come back here and we will all help you recover from this. What do you think?"

He chuckles softly while his face brightens up with a genuine smile, and then he nods and says "I would appreciate your help very much!"

The Youkhrist smiles brightly and says "good! You can trust us, Anilan. It's those Taoists you should be careful of."

"Taoists?" asks Ail with an infinitely dense and confused look on his face, turning his mind away from his woes and busying it with wonder.

Sanae giggles, then says "I'll have to explain that to you later, ok?"

The boy smiles and nods, then he finds himself being tackled on the chest by something dark, hard, soft, and mischievous.

On top of his dazed self is Agava, who wears a black vest and skirt over her tight purple ninja-tights, and has her wavy black hair held by her black bow.

She aims her blue eyes to the boy's spinning golden ones, smiles, and says "welcome back home twerp! Did you miss me!?"

Ail's reply is a dazed moan, so the dark girl look at the others; which just happen to have murderous gazes aimed straight at her; points at the boy, and casually asks "what's the matter with _him_? He's so tense."

* * *

Later that day, Ail's group arrives at the Hakurei Shrine with Agava, who has a nice steaming bump on her head while being dragged by a collar held with a rope that Lily controls.

While the spring fairy handles the shadow youkai, Sanae and Budou keep a very close watch on Ail, who still looks a bit odd; as if sick.

The concerned fruit bat walks in front of him, jumps on his arms, gives him a forced hug and says "no more afraid of friends, alright papa! You are not the bad guy; and me, and Mama Sanny, and everyone loves you."

Sanae takes the chance to get closer to him, holds him by the shoulder to get his attention, then says "listen to her Ail-kun. You're home; that horrible trial is over."

The boy closes his eyes, takes a long and deep breath through his nose, and as he slowly exhales while soft smile breaks the gloom from his face, he says "you're right. I'm sorry for all the trouble I have caused you already, but please bare with me. I feel... I feel as though I may still need your help through this."

"We're here Papa. Stay close to us, and I'll stay close to you." As the little bat youkai says this, she wraps her wings and arms around him, trapping his arms so that he cannot escape her.

Whether that is beneficial or not to him, it doesn't appear to be clear. He remains smiling softly but doesn't move an inch, and so Sanae is about to remove the little youkai.

Ail merely giggles, easily frees his arm to pat Budou's head, and when he's about to speak, Rika calls "Miss Reimu, big-brother Ail is here, and he brought Budou and Miss Sanae."

The angelic girl's wings flutter with happiness as she makes her call, then stops and raises her eyebrows while adding "oh my, and he brought Miss Agava and Lily too."

The greetings happen as normal as one would expect from someplace other than the Hakurei Shrine; what with a few hugs here and there, a kiss on the cheek for the returning ally, and a few exchange of welcoming words from the host. Lily does steal several hugs from Rika before stopping.

Ail wonder if he's really back home, seeing as he was expecting something else; maybe a yin-yang orb on someone's head, Reimu turning violent over Marisa's playful teasing, or perhaps Suzaku would crash-land on him after a danmaku bullet blasted her; but none of that happened.

At the living room's short table; after the boy told just enough of his story without hesitation; the dense one finally notices Chiaki trying to take some paper money out of Budou's pocket, and stops her.

"Now this is more like it," he said while holding the cursing vixen by the back of her neck. "It came a little late, but this is the kind of welcome I expected at this Shrine."

That comment earns him a vengeful yin-yang to the head, but as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened, the boy asks "and who is this I'm holding here?"

Agava stands and bangs her hands on the table, looks at the girl, laughs out loud, then says "so she made you her SLAVE!? You weak little bi...vixen! I told you she was too much for you!"

Rika taps the back of the shadow youkai's head to shut her up and says "Ail, this is Chiaki Onkamikami, and she is my new familiar! Chiaki, say hi to big-brother Ail"

The rude youkai pokes the boy's forehead with spite while saying "what!? Ya mean to tell me dis hairy butt-head is _yer_ big bro? N' wonder ye're so weird, big-boobs!"

To Chiaki's eyes, Rika has become a dark demon with red glowing eyes, swords for wings, snakes for hair, and talon-sized fangs for teeth.

The maid's sweet, yet stern voice sends chills down everyone's spines as she speaks in a strict tone. "Chiaki Onkamikami, you will speak like a lady, not like some gutter rat learning to communicate with a street thug. Now apologize to him and everyone in this room, then go to the temple and meditate on what you have done. **That... is an order.**"

The fox is hugging the shadow who cries "I'm so sorry for you, girl!"

Regardless of the shadow girl's sympathy, Chiaki immediately bows to Ail and says "'M sorry to 'ave called you a butt-head, Mister Butt-Head!" She turns to the rest of the group and bows "I'm sorry fer my misbe... misbe..havior. Misbehavior!"

The second she's done with her apologies, she darts right out of the room with her tail between her legs, and sits in the center of the praying room with her legs crossed under her black skirt.

Rika sighs, then bows her head apologetically while saying "please forgive her. She's got a good heart, but she needs strict guidance." As she lifts her head, she holds her chin and mutters "I have to have her wear red..."

Ail chuckles awkwardly as he looks at Lily and Budou, relaxes when he looks at Sanae, then says "good old Hakurei Shrine..."

Reimu's next retaliation stops when she sees pain in the boy's eyes as he adds "just the way it should be. I hope it never changes."

She lowers her weapon of choice (gohei) as she takes her seat next to Marisa and Suzaku, then asks "what else happened in there?"

For a moment, he thinks a white lie would be more prudent, but he remembers what Byakuren told him, so he gulps and says "because of me, you lost your status as the Hakurei Shrine Maiden, most of your powers, your home; everything. And later after that, y-"

Marisa reaches for his ear; seeing as she's nearest; tugs it tight and demands "don't start a story if you can't finish it. It only makes the listeners _that_ more stressful!"

"ALRIGHTALRIGHT I'MSORRY!"

He rubs his throbbing lobe and quickly says "after that, Reimu, Remilia and Flandre died because of me! Reimu protected me, Flandre fell in love with me, and Remilia... because I was so fucking stupid!"

Sanae holds his shoulders to show her support while saying "enough! One thing at a ti-"

He holds his head and grips his hair as he remember what happened last, and as if sounding mad he continues "then Reisen said she loved me after telling me she wanted to kill me while Cirno, Nue, the Akis, the Tengu, Satori and Orin, all were fighting a losing battle just to help me!"

"Papa, stop!" shouts Budou while trying to pull his hands away from his ears. Without even noticing the girls, he shakes as he continues "then I finally meet with Sanae and Budou, and all they want to do is kill me, and all I do is defend myself and try to run, but I... I kill them both-"

"Ahh, how interesting," says the voice of a girl from the shrine's entrance. "His desire for peace is strong; as strong as yours, Reimu. My, my, I daresay you're like brother and sister."

The girl entering the shrine has grey eyes, very light, almost platinum blonde hair she makes into a style that looks like large ears, and wears a purple headgear-like earmuffs that have the Chinese symbol for "Harmony" on them.

Her elaborate white vest, purple dress, and her sheathed sword sway with her steps as she makes her way inside, holds her plain-looking rod against her lips to hide them, and says "I finally meet Mister Ail. I'm assuming you are Ail, am I correct? Sanae and little Budou have desired your return so strongly. They seem to be at peace now."

The boy looks into her eyes with a bit of contempt; after all, he sees no reason to doubt Byakuren's warnings; but when he fails to see actual malice from the girl his gaze softens and he says "and you must be Miss Miko Toyosatomimi. Miss Byakuren spoke quite ...fondly of you."

Miko's gaze hardens a slight as she says "we don't see each other eye-to-eye;" but her eyes quickly soften once that is out of the way.

As the two keep staring into each others' eyes, their invisible tension lessens until the Taoist is sitting next to Reimu, even though the shrine maiden looks like she's about to say "who invited you!?"

"And she went and said it," whispers Budou to Ail's ear.

* * *

Just an hour later, as lunch is being served, Kyo, Luna and Medicine enter the shrine.

"Hello everyone" happily chirps Luna, surprising even Agava. It's not usual to hear Luna Rivers speaking with such happy tones.

Ail doesn't care about that. His mind is still stuck on his experience, and seeing Kyo alive sends many jolts of joy to his heart, and clumps of doubt to his mind.

He walks around the table, making sure not to step on Rika's or Lily's feet, walks over to his friend, and says "y-you're alive. Kyo, you're alive."

The friendly hug and loud greeting the muscled boy was just about to perform ends up in a void after being weirded-out by his friend, and instead asks "we don't see you all this time and this is the greeting you come up with? You've turned pretty morbid, buddy."

Ail ends up bro-hugging his long-time friend, which makes the awkwardness levels sky-rocket right off the roof, with Kyo being in the spotlight of said awkwardness.

The black haired boy frees his left arm and pats his long-time friend on the head, then hesitantly asks "um th-there, there. Buddy, what's the meaning of this?"

Before he answers, Anilan notices Luna and Medicine staring at him, and his mind goes back to that horrible encounter, where Luna almost killed him after telling him Kyo was dead.

Without noticing it, he lets go of his muscled friend and trembles as he takes cautious steps away from the girls while muttering "I'm sorry; I didn't know! I'm so sorry. I'msorryI'msorry!"

He takes a few steps back and trips on the short table, falls on his back and hugs his own knees against himself, and with terror in his eyes he says "I didn't mean to. I didn't know."

The world around him takes an unhealthy greyish tone as his consciousness seems to drift for a moment, and when he comes back to he realizes he is being held by Sanae and Budou, and that everyone around them is giving him very worried looks, even that Miko girl he just met.

As he tries to smile back at them, the despair in his mind is driving him crazy. "_Nnnnoooo... I can't handle it! The more I try the worst I get! Mima! Mima, can you hear me?_"

Kyo kneels closer to his friend and is unable to hide the fact that he is worried sick for him.

Luna gets a little closer as well to show her support to her man, then Kyo looks at Ail and says "Ail, buddy, we can postpone the wedding a little more if you'd like."

"NO!" barks the boy as he jumps back on his feet. "I've already caused a great delay. I will not accept it! You will have that wedding on its due date, and I _WILL_ be there!"

[_Ail? Ail, what's wrong? You seem to be on edge there._]

Luna herself steps forward and in a gentle tone of voice says "Anilan, it's alright; we understand. What happened in that trial world was devastating to you, so please accept Kyo's offer. I can wait, honest."

The dense one shakes his head, takes a deep breath while saying to Mima "_please don't leave. I need to talk to you;_" then looks at his friends and says "I'm sorry, I seem to have lost myself there. Please, let me take some fresh air."

Before Budou or Sanae offer (or force) themselves to go with him, he signals them to stop and says "don't, please, I need to be alone with my thoughts. I promise I will be just fine. I'll be right there on the veranda. I won't move from there."

The girls give hesitant nods, but Rika doesn't seem convinced; especially after Suzaku told her what he just said to Mima; so the vermilion bird is sent to Rika's bedroom.

Moments later, Ail is just outside the living quarters, easily visible through the paper doors as he holds on to one of the support beams. What they don't know is that he's hugging it as though for dear life.

His unhinged eyes can't keep in one place as his body shakes, and yet to the others, it just seems as though he's taking slow and deep breaths to calm himself down.

[_Alright Ail, what's goin' on? What happened?_]

"_Mima, I tried, I really did, but I can't take it! Everywhere I go, those memories from the dream world keep popping up! They're driving me mad! I thought I could take it, but I can't!_

[_You want me to seal them don't you? But Ail, that shrine maiden and the bat are with you. If I seal those memories now you won't know why they are giving you special treatment._]

"_But Mima... it's maddening! Even with them there I keep having the flashbacks and forgetting where I am!_"

[_Look, I really wish I could just lock those in your subconscious right now, but doing so all at once will be unwise. The others; they will wonder why you suddenly changed your mood and why you are so calm. Please, Ail, try to continue living on as you are. Who knows, maybe you can pick up your life where you left it off by the time you master your mind._]

Ail's body seems to melt into a pile of mud as tears start dropping out of his eyes while he says to her "_but Mima, how does one pick up on one's old life when everything has changed so much for me? How am I supposed to just go on after seeing so much pain and death; pain and death caused by what **I** almost became!?_"

[_Listen Ail, I can't force you to keep those memories, but when you chose to keep them before, you already complicated the process. Now, if we **were** to help you, it would have to be gradually. Just... listen, try to keep them for a month or two; see how you can handle them during that time. I promise you, you'll be able to deal with yourself and you'll be glad you didn't chicken out._]

The boy sighs, sniffles, and then says to her "_alright, I'll do my best to hold on; but it's just so hard. I can't help but wonder how Rika dealt with herself? How did she manage to live the way she did, and remain the sweet girl she is to this day?_"

[_I'm afraid that is something you'll have to find out for yourself._]

After hearing the conversation, Suzaku waits for Ail to go back inside before taking flight and moving straight to the other side of the building.

After the reunion is done, and somehow Marisa's under-nudity goes unnoticed by the two men, Ail, Sanae, Budou and Agava make their way to the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Lily has decided to stay with Rika and her honey cupcakes a little longer.

Before they reach the long stairs down, however, Ail is called by the shrine's angelic maid. "Big brother, wait a moment please!"

She reaches him quickly, stands in front of him, and then says "I was wondering, seeing as the wedding is still a week away, could I trouble you to take me to, and to accompany me for a few days when I visit my old home? You see, I don't wish to bother Miss Yukari, and I would like to come back at any moment without delay."

"_This is it,_" cheers the boy in his mind. "_Some time alone with Rika might be for the best! She could tell me how to deal with this mess inside my head!_"

He smiles at her and nods, then says "sure. I would be honored; i-if it's no trouble for you Budou, or you, Sanae."

The girls look at him with a little suspicion, especially after noticing some despair in his eyes, but after a while and after looking at each other, the girls nod, and the little bat says "if it's with Rika, then alright. She'll make sure Papa Ail comes back home safe and sound."

"Thank you little one, and I will too," says the winged girl as she rubs the little girl's head and flutters her own small wings.

The green haired girl still hesitates, but she settles her own doubts and says "well just remember to come straight to the shrine when you come back; and to the Moriya Shrine, not the Hakurei Shrine. Ah... of course, you have to bring Rika here, but then it's STRAIGHT to my shrine afterwards!"

The angelic maid giggles at Ail's distress and confusion, then says "don't worry Miss Sanae, I'll make sure he's there the very second he drops me back. You have my word."

The boy looks at them with sad and confused little eyes and asks "di-did I do something wrong again?"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Scarlet Devil Mansion, Flandre roars Azzhara's name after she finds her underwear drawers have been plundered, and all her bloomers have been replaced with laced, side-tie, or striped panties, lingerie, and what looks to be a set of strings that make a sling bikini.

The three-tailed cat hops on the drawer with a mischievous and confident grin on its face, hisses a chuckle, then meows in a most suave manner that sends uncomfortable chills down the blushing vampire's spine.

She lifts her bent rod and points it at the offending cat, then threatens "if you don't get my underwear back, I am going to neuter you _right where you stand!_"

She activates and launches her Lavatein at him, but Azzhara is already on her head and scratching her senseless, makes her stumble against a wall, causes her to fall down, then lands on top of her in his human form.

His yellow eyes glow with lust and his cheeks turn red when looking down at that cute scowling face that wants nothing more than to maim him, and chuckles softly when strengthening his hold on her while saying "I'm so sorry Flandre my love, I took the liberty of burning every single one of those boring bloomers. Now you have nothing else to wear but the cute underwear I got for you."

As the girl's rage limit rises, he continues saying "and please do wear that swimsuit I got you. It should accent your beautiful skin."

Sakuya opens the door to Flandre's room and says "young Mistress, Mister Anilan is on his way here, and the Mistress has asked for your presence at-"

Flandre's exploding roar not only cuts the maid's speech, it also sends the three-tailed cat straight toward the elegant maid.

Azzhara is unable to control his flight, and being so stiff out of reflex he accidentally cuts Sakuya's shirt in half, leaving her pink bra bare.

Flandre stops her would-be rampage after hearing the loud rip and Sakuya's shriek, catches Azzhara from mid-air, and looks toward the maid as she holds her shirt and trembles in place.

A dangerous red aura burns around the silver haired woman, knives appear around her and aim themselves straight toward the cat and the vampire, and with red eyes replacing the usual calm blue ones, the time stopping human says "you two and your games have gone LONG ENOUGH! The maid will stop this charade ONCE AND FOR ALL!"

Flandre holds Azzhara close as they both shiver in fear of the dangerously angry maid, and both screech as soon as the knives start flying.

The little blonde runs right out of the room with twin-tears flowing out of her eyes as she calls for her "onee-sama" and holding on to the nekomata fro comfort, while the maid walks behind her, smiling while calmly saying "oh please, I'm not going to hurt you two much! I just want to show you my _point_! If you don't move so much, it will hurt less, I promise~"

Moments later, Flandre reaches the main hall with Azzhara on her hands, and she and the cat are covered with knives as though they were a set of pin-cushions, and both sniffle while tears roll down their cheeks.

Sakuya stands to their right in a clean set of clothes, sighing happily before saying "here's the young lady, just like you asked, My Lady."

Remilia sits on the main chair of the room with her legs crossed elegantly, with Patchouli to her left, Leon and Lina behind her, and the fairy maids standing on both sides of the carpet in front of her.

She raises an eyebrow as she contemplates the sight before her, then her elegant maid says "oh, I just had to make sure these two would behave properly."

Flandre sniffles, then whispers to Azzhara "just you wait, you damned cat."

Sakuya grips the back of her neck and says "I said, _BEHAVE PROPERLY_!"

Remilia can only flap her wings once while glancing over to Patchouli, who seems to be at a loss for words as well.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the farthest shore of the Misty Lake, Ail, Sanae, Budou and Agava look over toward the tiny island in the distance where the Scarlet Devil Mansion is.

"Almost there..." mutters the boy, to which his girlfriend asks "Ail-kun, why do you insist on walking? Couldn't we just fly over here?"

Budou pokes his side to take his attention and asks "or better yet, why don't you just open one of those gaps?"

The boy shivers once, nods twice, then says "I-I'm trying to not rely on those gaps again; at least until my training with Yukari is done."

He looks sad toward the mansion as he says "I kept opening them all willy-nilly and never really thought of the dangers of messing with borders and barriers."

Agava gives him an evil and toothy grin, and says "that doesn't explain why you are so keen on walking instead of flying. It's much faster you know."

He chuckles, rubs her head as he would do to Budou; to the shadow youkai's annoyance; and says "in this case, it's more if an indulgence of mine. I want to enjoy the little things here at my home, and there's nothing better than walking to achieve that."

As they continue to gaze over toward the mansion, they slowly take notice of a girl standing to their right.

The cute girl has grey hair she ties to a ponytail, grey eyes, and wears a tall and silly-looking navy-blue hat (called an eboshi), a white shirt with long and thick sleeves, and a purple skirt. Ail swears he thinks that's an uniform seen in his books of the Heian era, only slightly adjusted.

It seems as though she hasn't even notice them there, and mutters her plan to them. "And there it is. Now I just need to fly over, and assassinate those monsters. It's foolishness proof!"

Ail doesn't need to hear any more and activates his weapon of light the very moment the girl notices them and hops back with a loud yelp.

She places her hand on her chest, forces herself to smile, then says "salutation fellow travelers! Have thou come to rid this world of the demons that inhabit that edifice? I do not mind the competition, but heed my warnings; the leader of the demons belongs to me, so stay out of my way, or be vanquished alongside the vile creatures!"

Anilan's most unfriendly scowl accompanies the tip of his flaming weapon of light as it forces the cute girl to raise her hands defensively.

Without thinking of what he's doing, he threatens her. "You as so much lift a single _finger_ at any of my friends at the mansion, and I'll personally slice you until there's nothing left but your memories!"

The girl scowls though shivers with fright, then exclaims "what is the meaning of this! Does this mean you are comrades of the demons too, Miss Sanae!?"

Budou jumps on Ail's arms and exclaims "no papa, she's good, she's not mean!" while Sanae holds him by his shoulder and says "it's alright Ail, calm down! That's Futo Mononobe, Miko's friend!"

Because of their interference, the dense one lowers his defenses and asks "a friend of Miko? B-but... she just said she wanted to kill Remilia!"

The shrine maiden gets in front of him to make eye contact and scolds him. "Ail, calm down! First of all, she's a friend! Second, shock from the trial or not, drawing your weapon against strangers is dangerous, and you know this well! Third..."

She lowers her voice to a whisper and says "she's probably trying to get some people to turn to Taoism, but she won't get past Meiling, so take it easy!"

"I heard that," barks Futo furiously while glaring at the golden-eyed boy. She points at him and adds "I have no quarrel with him, but if he wants to brawl, I will! I'm not frightened of getting my hands a little messy!"

Anilan is a bit reluctant to do so, but looking at the little bat's pleading eyes, and his girlfriend's scolding eyes; plus the look of expectancy on Agava's face; he decides to bow apologetically and say "Miss Futo, please forgive me."

As soon as he straightens himself again, he looks at her and adds "it's just that the people that live there are dear friends to me, and I do not wish to see them threatened."

The gray haired girl looks carefully into his eyes as though studying something thoroughly, then says "I see. I fail to see evil intents in you, nor do I detect fibs. Tell me something; I heard tales of that mansion being overrun by blood sucking monsters of the night. Why wouldst thou protect such vile fiends?"

A slight surge of irritation crawls up Anilan's spine after hearing her calling his friends 'monsters' yet again, however he manages to remain looking calm and serene and says "they are not monsters, only different from us. Remilia and Flandre are vampires, and they have had a very hard life. People spread rumors because they fear them; because they cannot understand them. Now my question to you is; why do you seek to harm them? Have they don't something wrong to you?"

Sanae, Budou and Agava roll their eyes as they already know the answer Futo gives. "I have no personal quarrel with these people, however I was asked by the villagers to dispose of them to prove my claims about Taoism. That means defeating these creatures equals to more followers joining our group!"

The dense one's facepalm is so intense, Futo can't help but wince and ask "why would thee harm thine self in such a painful manner?"

The boy sigh, shakes his head while Sanae says "let it go Ail-kun." He looks at the girl and asks "and did those people gave their word to you that they would join your group if you gave them that proof, or did they merely laugh as they left?"

The girl hops back for a moment and looks at the water next to her feet, blushes as though slightly embarrassed, then mutters "well, they did appear amused by my words... and never really promised anything..."

As her voice trails off, Ail's own face softens to his usual state, then he says "I'm sorry Miss Futo, I didn't mean to cause you pain. I am merely looking out for my friends."

Futo finally smiles when looking at him, making him realize she's adorable. Sanae doesn't approve of the pink face he's making.

The Taoist sighs and links both of her hands under her sleeves, then says "thou are a very noble person, Mister Ail. You risk much for those allied to you; and your eyes remind me a bit of the Crown Prince and Miss Hakurei."

She walks over to him, extends an arm, and says "alright, please think of me as an ally to thee as well. I believe the shaking of hands applies to this joyous occasion?"

As she says this, she looks at Sanae and Budou; whom give approving nods; then looks to Ail as he accepts her hand shake.

She smiles, bows her head, then says "alas, I shall have to search for new methods of convincing the people to join Taoism. I shall consult the Crown Prince. She might have wonderful ideas, as always."

After saying all of that she bows; and so do Budou and Ail. "I wish you luck in your quest, Miss Futo-eh? Where-?" The dense one opens raises his sight and gasps lightly with surprise when he fails to find Futo.

Sanae merely giggles while Agava chuckles mischievously, then says "come on sweetheart, let's go to the mansion already. I wish to go back home before it gets dark, or I won't cook dinner!"

The boy sighs with a smile, nods and says "let's fly close to the water, please. I want to enjoy every corner of Gensokyo I can."

His girlfriend giggles, then nods, and then they all take flight and make their slow way towards the Scarlet Devil Mansion, enjoying the water just below them as they fly so close to it. Yes, even Agava is enjoying herself, but stays behind so that nobody can see her grinning while playing with the water.

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Budou, Agava, Kyo, Luna Rivers, Phredia, and Chiaki were created by Willie G.R.

Rika Onkamikami and Suzaku the Vermilion Bird were created by Snapshot 2010.

APR 29 2013

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

Patchouli: And so, you finally finished another chapter.

Me: That I did. *Looks around* Uhh, that's odd. Where's Satori.

Patchouli: Never mind that. Just tell me, why are you taking so long to post these chapters? They are so simple and crude.

Me: Lack of motivation. I just don't see the use of hurrying up.

Patchouli: Hmm, I see. You lack discipline, don't you?

Me: *Gasps, then slumps* that was a blunt hit. *Sighs* but you are right, I lack discipline.

Satori: *She drops out of a cabinet tied up and gagged. The cabinet flies away with feathery wings.*

Me: What the f-

Patchouli: Ah, that damned cabinet. It never follows instructions.

Satori: *Is trying to yell.*

Me: I wonder what's she trying to say.

Patchouli: If she doesn't want another round of punishment, she'll say nothing.

Satori: *Gasps and settles down.*

Me: Aren't you both stage 4 bosses?

Patchouli: Correction: stage 4 bosses, and an EX-mid-boss myself.

Me: Point.


	14. Chapter 14

[_i_] = Mima talking to Ail's mind.

* * *

Ail closes his eyes and smiles as he glides just over the waters of the Misty Lake as he, Sanae, Budou and Agava make their way to the Scarlet Devil Mansion.

The ample-chested shadow youkai keeps herself behind the group so that nobody can see her playing with the water and enjoying the glide through the lake as well; and is very glad Rumia isn't near to see her.

The bat and the shrine maiden rise a little higher while the dense one and the shadow girl get closer to the water and cause it to split as they fly over just inches above it.

The boy places his fingers on the water and enjoys the moment of peaceful fun, ignoring the fact that his pants are getting wet.

Meanwhile, Agava gasps and rises with a red face when she realizes Sanae and Budou noticed her enjoying the water as well.

The girls land near the shore where Ail is headed to. Said boy flies in a circle at the very edge of the water as he rises up, then lands with a light thud right in front of Budou.

He smiles at the bat and the human goddess, grins at the shadow youkai, then says "that felt better than I thought it would."

He earns a little giggle from the small bat youkai, who says "I can see you are more Papa and less scared now."

The dense one nods with a smile and says "yes, I feel a whole lot better. I feel a little bit more like myself."

Agava is obviously disgusted by the cheesy dialogue, but everyone seems to ignore her.

Sanae grabs Ail's hand, pulls him toward the mansion, and says "come on, let's hurry. ...I promise to make it worth the hasting."

She flutters her eyelashes at him and this makes him smile so hard, he feels as though his cheeks will split apart.

When he tries to respond to that, he feels the air leave his lungs after something strong and cold smashes against him while cheering "human boy Ail is back!"

The shrine maiden sighs irritably after her moment with her man gets ruined yet again, while the teal haired bat palms her face, and the mean shadow youkai chuckles while pointing at the boy on the ground.

Cirno rubs her face against Ail's back, then happily says "you have no idea how much I thunk about you, even though I don't know why I did that!"

She stops for a moment to look at Budou and says "actually, I don't know why I'm so happy to see him." She resumes her face-rubbing immediately afterward.

Ail manages to rub her head without looking while weakly saying "Cirno, so good to see you." At the same time, Sanae grunts and grumbles "get off him fairy." At the same time, Budou tries to pull Cirno by the wings while grunting "come on Cirno, get off him!"

Agava watches and laughs from the sidelines, unaware of a pair of red eyes watching her from behind some bushes.

Finally, the cute ice fairy is pulled off of the boy's back after Phredia herself used a spark to blast the girl off without harming her or her hugging-pillow.

Sanae helps Ail roll on his back, kneels on the ground and places him against her body and asks "Ail-kun, are you alright? You're shivering so much."

The dense one stammers a bit until the cold sensation leaves him, then smiles and says "I-I-I'm alright; j-j-just c-cold!"

As the shrine maiden warms the boy up with some rubs and cuddles, Budou gets Cirno on her feet and asks "what's the deal Cirno!? Why are you hugging papa so much?"

The ice fairy looks at the bat youkai, raises a confused eyebrow, and then says "I really don't know. The other day I felt very sad because he wasn't here, but then I felt okay about it, but then I saw him right now and felt _REALLY, REALLY happy_ to see him, and I just had to hug him. It felt good."

"Well please control yourself," angrily says Sanae before Budou can speak. "Look we don't have time to play with fairies right now, so please go away."

Anilan taps Sanae's shoulder once and stands while saying "Sanae-chan, that was a little rude," then, after helping his girlfriend up, he extends his hand to Cirno and smiles while saying "I am very glad to see you too Cirno, but we really have to go. Remilia is waiting for me and you know she gets angry when she waits too long."

The ice fairy gladly gives her hand for a quick shake, stares at the boy quizzically as he talks to her, then thinks for a moment while still holding on to his hand.

After a while she smiles and nods to him, lets his hand go as she takes flight, then says "alright, I understand." She flies toward the water, turns before she's too far, then says "but you and Budou-chan better come visit me more. I am lonely and nobody wants to play with me."

Ail smiles as he watches her leave, a tear of joy escapes him after realizing she truly is alive, then he looks to Sanae and Agava, and then Flandre's roar from the mansion absorbs all the attention from the party.

"YOUUU BLASTED CAAAAT!"

After staring for a while the boy chuckles, then says "well, looks like things are as normal as ever in the mansion."

Agava laughs out loud, then stops and eagerly says "come on, _come on!_ Let's get over there! I want to see what's tormenting that potty mouth this time!"

Sanae, Budou, Phredia and Ail share a quick glance, all shrug at each other, then follow after the eager shadow youkai to the mansion's front gates.

* * *

When they reach the gates, they are greeted by the sight of two redhead guards; one in traditional clothes, while the other is in a more alluring outfit.

When Meiling spots the group, she gasps with excitement and waves while calling "it's Ail! Ail, you're finally here! Welcome!"

When Kimi sees the gate guard get so happy and excited, she feels like she's going to gag, and says "tone it down, Bubbles. You sound like some horny school girl seeing her boyfriend for the ninth time at the school yard."

When the sweet girl is unable to answer; mostly because of confusion; the dense boy answers for her. "Hello Meiling. Kimi, as annoyingly charming as ever I see. How are you girls?"

She shadow dragon merely glares at him from her side of the gate, while the dragon youkai approaches him to hug him and say "we are quite well. Now please, go inside. The Mistress is waiting for all of you at the main hall's gathering room."

As she lets him go, she can see him looking at her with longing, as if seeing her for the first time in ages, and so she asks "what's the matter? Did I hug you too hard?"

He shakes his head, chuckles, then says "Sakuya made you memorize all that stuff you just said, didn't she?"

"That's mean," she says as she puts him back down. She looks back at her shadow clone behind her and says "besides, it's was Kimi who helped me remember just now."

The boy looks back at the shadow girl as she looks away to hide her red cheeks, then mutters "is that so..." and then says to her "sorry if I was being rude earlier; and that new look really suits you. I bet there's a certain dragon that would like to see you in those."

His accidental teasing causes the shadow girl's face to turn tomato red and her eyes to lose focus, but instead of the expected retaliation, she turns all the way around and says "just go inside before I p-p-pound ya! That brat's been talking about you all day, and she wouldn't want to see you with a fresh black eye I bet!"

From the bushes, the pair of red eyes targeting Agava suddenly turn their full interest towards the dense boy, who shivers and looks around in wonder.

Budou jumps on his back, taps his head twice, then whispers "papa, I think she likes you now," while looking at the blushing girl hiding her red face from sight.

Sanae quickly clings to his arm, rests her head on his shoulder, and scowls a bit as she glances up to him while saying "Ail-kun is all mine and nobody else's. And he better behave too, so no more compliments for other girls! Hmph!"

At first Ail feels cornered and scared, but he somehow manages to calm himself down before breaking down needlessly, and merely holds the shrine maiden in a soft embrace.

Meiling and Phredia stare at them and sigh simultaneously; the fairy's sigh being a bit mute; then the gate guard says "you three look so nice together. Just looking at you makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside."

Kimi punches the wall and makes a loud bang that gets everyone's attention, then shouts "yes, yes, beautiful! Now _get inside_ before that bitchy brat comes out here looking for you! How many times do I have to tell you how much she wants to see you?"

The smiles become worried frowns as their attention go to the shadow girl bending over at the wall and looking down to the ground.

They all decide it's best to just move on, and after a nod of acknowledgement from Meiling, even the eager Agava walks slowly past the gate, keeping an eye out in case Kimi decides to go berserk.

When Ail passes by with Budou and Sanae, he stops for a moment and without looking at the shadow girl he says "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

"Just go," whispers the girl, and so the group heads to the door, and promptly makes their way inside the mansion.

In that brief moment of solitude, Kimi sobs softly. Though she may seem like she's crying from afar, she's actually fighting off a smile that refuses to leave her sweaty flushed face.

After another chuckle that she makes sound like a sob, she whispers to herself "why did that make me so happy? I didn't even like that dragon, so why; WHY?"

* * *

At the mansion's halls at the basement, Flandre walks with Azzhara by her side, and even though she looks content, she tries to make herself look angry.

She pats the back of her skirt and whispers "so comfortable," then the nekomata coos and says "see? You like them! I knew laced panties were right for you; just like that blue-haired woman said!"

Her lips wriggle as her cheeks turn red, then she throws a claw to his face; which he happens to hold back by merely poking the palm of her hand; then sighs in defeat and says "if I could kill you... bah, whatever. Your annoying crap has been good to me for once. I look better than Onee-sama now."

"Oh, WAY better my love," admits the boy. "Your body is curvier and more developed than hers. You'll attain a regal look in no time."

The blonde stops, slowly turns around with her eyes glowing dangerously, raises both hands as she shakes with rage, then roars "you saw my sister naked!? I AM GOUGING YOUR EYES OUT, YOU PERVERTED FREAK!"

She throws herself on him but ends up crashing against a nearby vase after he transforms into a cat, and before she can recover, a small ornamental portrait falls on her head and stays on her like a collar, leaving her vulnerable to his attacks.

Flandre screams with a mixture of rage and despair, yet even with her deafening voice echoing everywhere; she can hear Ail's call of concern for her.

Azzhara jumps off her face and sits to her right, and two seconds later Ail arrives with a focused orange orb on his hand and asking "Flan! Flan, are you alright!? What happened!?"

He helps her up and she gives the boy a bone-crushing hug that forces him to absorb his energy orb to make a barrier for protection around his ribs, and then she says "onii-chan, you came back! Please kill that cat! It was torturing me just now! It changed all my underwear, and scratched my face, and broke my clothes, and stupid Remilia doesn't kill him for me!"

The dense boy stares at the cat, the cat meows back and starts licking itself on the legs, then the golden-eyed boy looks down at Flandre and asks "and... why haven't you killed it yet if it's such a nuisance?"

She lets him go to give him a cute angry look and says "because the little bastard from hell has trained all his life to kill me, so I can't make him go kyuu, I can't claw his guts out, I can't eat him, I can't break him, and now he says he wants to MARRY me!"

While Anilan stares back and forth between her and the cat, Agava reveals herself from behind the boy and points at the blonde while she laughs, then merrily says "how pathetic! Getting owned by a kitty cat! BWAHAAAA-HAHAHA! On my shadows, this is so RICH! Just wait until I tell Rumia-ACK!"

The angry, twitching vampire has her left fist clenched while glaring with teary eyes at the offending girl, and growls "why Agava, how nice to _see_ you again. Please, stop being an _insufferable_ bitch and come on in."

The shadow youkai's head rolls right below the blonde with a smile, and says "pfff. Hello Flandre! It's been a while. Ooh, very nice panties. Comfortable and sexy. I told you bloomers didn't suit you."

Flandre kicks the girl's head toward Budou; who catches it and places it back on the reconstructed body; then angrily says "yeah, yeah, whatever. Come; Onee-sama is waiting for us at the-"

"Library," finishes Sakuya after appearing out of thin air to Sanae's and Budou's left.

Unlike Sanae and Budou who stare cautiously at the chief maid, Ail smiles at her and exclaims "Sakuya, you look great! How are you? I-is Remilia alright? N-nobody's angry at me, right?"

Sakuya raises an eyebrow and stares at the now-shaky boy with confusion, then coldly says "why would anyone be angry at you? Did you do something wrong? ...In any case, please come with me to the library. The Mistress is expecting you."

Everyone quiets down upon the cold words and unfriendly tone of the maid, and merely follow after her in silence, though as soon as the bat and maiden are at earshot of the boy, the little girl whispers "papa, please; you said you felt better. What happened? Why are you asking scared stuff agian?"

Anilan shudders to Sanae's touch, then whispers "I'm sorry, it's just seeing her reminded me of..."

"The Mistress has a slight idea of what happened to you, Inmodo," interrupts Sakuya with that unfriendly tone. "She doesn't wish to know any details if you do not wish to share them, but I must ask you..."

She stops and turns to face the boy. Her eyes turn red as she holds a knife on her left hand, and rubs the tip of it with her right thumb as she coldly asks "did you... or did you _not_ murder the mistresses on purpose?"

"Hey, that's not fair," barks Budou as she gets between Ail and Sakuya. Flandre, Azzhara and Agava all stare curiously, not knowing what the conversation is about.

The little bat spreads her wings to cover the boy and his girlfriend as she says "Papa Ail had a very hard time in that world! He had some accidents, but papa is a **_good_** person! Of course he didn't do it on purpose!"

"Accidents?" questions the maid as her gaze pierces through the small opening between the little youkai's wing and the crown of her head, where she can see the boy's hurt eyes looking back at her.

Anilan places his hands on the little girl's shoulder and gently pulls her back, effectively relaxing her enough to lower her wings.

He looks back at the silver haired maid with hurt, but determined eyes and says "regardless of my past with the Scarlet Sisters, I would never even dream of harming either on purpose; but if you cannot believe my words..."

He raises his hand and pulls back on the long sleeve of his new purple shirt, makes a small knife of light appear at the tip of his fingers as he places them near his forearm, then says "then allow me to make a small sacrifice to prove myself."

Sakuya stops time and holds his hand before letting it flow again, surprising everyone; save for Ail himself; and speaking in a more relaxed and friendly tone she says "I'm sorry Ail, I didn't mean to push you this way. It's just; Mistress Remilia saw the fate of that world you were in mix with our own. The moment she said you killed her and her little sister, I-"

"SANAE-PUNCH!"

The elegant maid is pushed a few feet away after Sanae's fist connects with her left cheek, though she stands her ground and holds her face while glaring at the green haired girl as though she's a hated enemy. "What! the HELL! was that for, you insufferable wretch!?"

Everyone stares at the girls with surprise, and not even the dense boy can manage to register what happened until it's too late.

The shrine maiden lowers her fist to let her hateful gaze meet with the maid's and darkly says "for messing with my Ail's head. He may be sweet and too forgiving, but I! am! not! Remember that, _chief maid_!"

Anilan and Flandre chuckle nervously as each gets in front of their respective girl, then the boy says "c-come on, that was too much Sanae. Please apologize."

The vampire glares cutely at the maid and says "and Sakuya was being too mean! You better apologize too, or I'm telling Onee-sama!"

Both girls snort, look at each other for a brief moment, turn away from each other, and then Sanae says "fine! I'm sorry I punched your face, even though you deserved it!"

Sakuya clicks her tongue, then says "I apologize for raising an alarm in my endeavor to protect those special to me."

Budou and Phredia sigh simultaneously, but then Agava beats her to saying "alright, this is as good as it gets, so let's just move forward, alright?"

* * *

The doors to the library swing open by the push from the maid's hands, and the first thing Ail notices is how uncommonly bright it is (for a vampire's standard).

Flandre instinctively shields her eyes with her arms and yelps with fear, but a purr and cheek-rub from the three-tailed nekomata helps her relax and she opens her eyes.

Floating over the center of the room, a bright crystal illuminates everything without harming the present vampires, or causing any kind of blinding discomfort.

The last to enter the room; after gawking at the crystal for long enough; is Ail, and the moment the light touches his face, Remilia courteously says "welcome by to my mansion, Anilan Inmodo Leuch. Please excuse Sakuya. She's been pretty edgy lately. I suspect it's that time of the month for her."

The out-of-place comment turns Sakuya's face so red, it could easily compete with the light emanating from the bright crystal; given the chance that is.

She bows her head low and quietly says "m-my apologies My Lady. I-I... um."

Ail bows to Remilia, who sits at her throne at the spot usually occupied by Patchouli's main desk with Leon and Lina standing to either side of said high chair.

He looks at her and says "it's alright. It's understandable for her to feel as she does. Things were too intense in that world, and I do feel I would do the same for my loved ones."

The heads turn to Sanae as she tries to grumble something, but ends up mumbling incoherently out loud because of Phredia easily holding her lips shut, and Budou holding her hands behind her back. Ail thinks that Sanae in that situation looks very alluring, but keeps quiet about it.

Remilia raises an eyebrow for a moment as she wonders why the boy is so calm after his experience, but decides against pressing the matter and smiles warmly as she says "well, in any case, welcome back my valued ally. I _was_ planning on having your welcome get-together at the main hall, but a certain blonde and her cat decided to have a war over underwear."

Flandre storms toward her sister, pokes her in the chest, and says "well that wouldn't have _happened_ if _you_ would have just helped _me_ kill that f***ing cat in the first place!"

The elder vampire narrows her eyes and speaks in a dangerous tone. "Flandre, we will discuss this later. Now is not the time. ...Now back! off!"

At the same time, Koakuma is looking anxious as she flies in circles around the impressive crystal, while Patchouli slowly says "uhh, Remi, something's reacting negatively to the crystal's energy."

Speaking over Patchouli, the blonde vampire says "no! I am tired of listening to you because you don't listen to _me!_ You're not being fair at all; you never have, and I'm _TIRED_ of that!"

The elder Scarlet raises her wings threateningly, her eyes glow with intensity as she looks down at her younger sister, and sounding more dangerous she says "this is your last warning, Flandre Scarlet. Back down now and save it for later, or-AUGH!"

Flandre clenches her teeth and throws a single red bullet at her sister's face, then turns her hands into fists and waits for Remilia's move.

On the sidelines, Ail is beyond himself with worry, while Agava cheers them on, and the rest are just casual about it.

Meanwhile, Patchouli, Leon, Koakuma and Lina are all doing what they can to stabilize the crystal when the magician exclaims "hey, quit that! This thing is highly unstable and is absorbing any source of energy it finds!"

Remilia sweeps the smoke from her eyes, looks directly into her sister's challenging eyes, then roars and shoots her with three tiny spears, catching her off guard with one that hits her on the chest.

Flandre yelps and holds her chest with both her hands, looks up at her sister as said vampire takes flight, then she suddenly tackles the light-blue haired vampire, and an unexpectedly silly fight of slaps and hair pulls begin.

Sakuya sighs and face palms while Ail worriedly exclaims "no, no, no, girls, don't fight! Stop fighting!"

"PAPA!" calls Budou after failing to hold him back when he sprints toward the fighting sisters.

"Wait, girls, please, fighting is dangerous! You have to stop now!"

The dense boy manages to split them apart long enough for the nonchalant chief maid to come and take Remilia while he takes Flandre, then the elder Scarlet shouts "LET ME GO! I have to teach that girl a _lesson_ in _RESPECT!_"

The blonde remains behind Ail while he pushes her by the shoulders, stick her tongue out at her sister, and then says "we both know I can kick your butt any time I WANT! If you want my respect, then you must _earn it_!"

"Oh, I'm going to earn it alright," mutters Remilia under her breath as she winds her arm back.

Sakuya is forced to jump back when her mistress activates a large red spear, and then the vampire throws it with all her might at both her sister and the meddling boy.

"Look out Ail-nii," calls the blonde vampire. Ail looks back at that spear; the same size and color of the spear that went right through Reimu's chest; and because of the mind-numbing chock that memory gives him, all he is able to do is erect a thin blue barrier over his back.

Patchouli and the others are pushed back when that crystal turns red when absorbing the energy from Remilia's spear, then the angry magician shouts "REMI YOU IDIOT, LOOK WHAT YOU DID!"

"HIT THE FLOOR!" shouts Koakuma at the same time as she jumps on top of the Kori twins; both whom seem very happy of having her soft chest on their backs.

The spear hits Ail's barrier and sends both him and Flandre spinning in the air to the crystal.

They bounce against it, land right on top of the bookshelf nearest to the second-floor balcony, and then get swallowed up by a round shadow that opens itself up just after the crash.

The crystal stabilizes, the shadow gap disappears, and everything seems to return to normal.

Everyone slowly stand up and look around, wondering what had happened, then Sanae calls "AIL," at the same time as Budou flies with Azzhara on her back toward the spot Anilan and Flandre disappeared and cries "Papa! Papa was here, I saw them crash here!"

"FLAN!" cries Remilia as she quickly reaches the bookshelf and scans the area with her eyes. "Where is she? Where did he take her to? FLANDREEE!"

The nekomata run in circles in the exact spot where the shadow gap appeared and meows desperately while stopping occasionally to try and dig on the spot with his claws.

Sanae and Sakuya arrive a second before Agava, who's aspect is that of seriousness as she says "they're inside the shadow realm."

Patchouli and her assistants fly just above the bookshelf and then she says "I tried to warn you Remi, the crystal destabilized. It was resonating with something around here. We had it under control, but your spear-"

"I don't care! Patchy, just get them back," loudly says the girl as she tries to hold back the feeling of guilt creeping up her throat.

The magician holds her temples for a moment and says "I'll try to open that portal again, but please, just listen to me when I'm-"

Remilia scream with despair and agony as Azzhara screeches and roars while clawing her head, face, limbs, and just about everywhere he can reach.

Budou and Sanae are now crying for the boy, Agava keeps looking at the shadow gap's spot with great interest, Sakuya is trying to get the raging Azzhara from ripping what's left of her mistress' underwear, and now a headache is trying to claim the magician.

Leon; with help from his sister; flies behind her and rubs her shoulders to soothe her and says "we'll help you out, my love. Don't despair."

Patchouli sighs, looks back with a fake look of annoyance, then says "please bring me some coffee. I'll need to think fast and hard for this one."

* * *

It is dark; so dark that they can barely make out where they are.

Ail and Flandre sit in what they believe is a corner, frightened out of their wits of what little they have managed to see.

In this world of darkness, they find themselves in a familiar, yet frightening place, where the walls are covered in what look like purple veins of small and colossal sizes, the floor is perfectly flat, and just a few feet in front of them is the true terror of the dark world.

A deep chasm makes the home of countless creatures, whose skins look like exposed rotten yellowish muscles that smell of excessive decay. Some look humanoid, others look like dragons, others like winged demons, and very few have black skins, though seem to smell just as bad.

Even though their sight is so diminished in that darkness, they were still able to see enough of the creatures to want to stay as far away from the edge of that chasm as they can; yet they can't get too far from it.

As they huddle up and press their back against what they hope is just a wall, Flandre sniffles once and says "big brother, what did you do this time? Where did you take us to? Take me home!"

"I swear," begins the boy with a frightened and desperate tone, "I didn't do anything. I was just trying to stop you and Remilia from fighting!"

The blonde vampire moves in front of the boy and holds his arms to let him know she's looking straight at him as she asks "oh yeah, that's right. Why did you get in the way, Ail? That was _our_ fight. You had no reason to get in the way."

The boy twitches hard and his heart rate accelerates so much it makes the vampire wince in the dark as he says "b-because... because fights can lead to so much pain. Th-that spear. That spear she used on us; it was the same one that k-"

His heartbeats become so strong, Flandre is considering covering her ears, but she doesn't to hear the rest of what he's saying. "...Killed Reimu, and eventually led to yours and Remilia's deaths; deaths... caused by me. By my stupidity! I'm so STUPID! I should be the one that was killed instead!"

"Ail, get a hold of yourself," exclaims the vampire as she gives him what she feels is a light smack on the face. In truth it was as though he was slapped with an iron fist.

The slap does it work and the dense boy's heart settles, and then he looks toward where he believes Flandre's eyes are and says "I... I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Flan, I'm just so afraid of losing any of you. I saw you..."

He sniffles, gulps his heart back down to his chest, and continues "I saw many friends die in that dream. I'm... I'm scared! What if it all becomes real?"

He gets another slap from the girl who grips his shoulders and shakes him up while demanding "hey, you're the big brother here! You're not allowed to cry, or I'll..."

Her voice cracks a bit as she says "or I'll cry too, and then you'll be sorry you made me cry, and then Remilia will kick your butt hard!"

He nods fast enough to let her know he's doing just that, and then says "you're right, you're right, I'm sorry Flan! I have to be strong. Uhh... hey, what's that?"

The little girl quickly gets behind him, and now they both look upon a pair of stretched grey specks headed toward them.

Even in that darkness they can tell the specks belong to a humanoid body, and so they panic; the boy gets up, and shouts "s-stay back! We're not here to cause trouble, but if you think we'll let you hurt us, you're dead wrong!"

The creature keeps moving forward at a very slow and steady pace, so Ail, whose eyes have adjusted enough for him to barely see Flandre now, taps her shoulder and signals her to shoot danmaku, which merely fizzles into dust from the tip of their fingers the moment they try to fire it.

Both panic and scream, causing the creature to hiss and slide back, but they are so scared they think it will charge them, so Ail takes Flandre's hand and takes off running toward what looks like a way out, seeing as the darkness there seems less dark.

The dark creature's eyes narrow even more as it stares at the colorful duo escape, and then its raspy breath breaks the silence in the area.

Meanwhile, after having run a long enough distance, the boy and the vampire find themselves trapped in a corner where the only place left to go is the chasm itself.

"Flandre," begins the dense boy with fright in his voice. "I think we're trapped."

The blonde whimpers and holds him by the waist for comfort, then both bundle up on the floor and wait for their inevitable demise at the hand of that creature.

* * *

Two days have passed (or at least, that's how it feels to them), and now that their eyes have adjusted to the intense darkness, they can now see clear enough to realize they have been trapped from the start.

The only path they have only goes so far in the direction they are now and back from where they came. The chasm itself is the only other choice left should they want to move forward, but with the rotting creatures down there that option becomes void.

It is clear that what's stopping them is a collapsed portion of the walls, which seem to have also destroyed most of the other path on the other side of that large stinky hole.

Ail and Flandre keep bundled up, but then the vampire suddenly whimpers and pushes the boy away, then says "this is too much. Your stupid gaps don't work, my powers don't work..."

She starts to breathe hard through her mouth and her eyes begin to glow slightly as she continues "and it is all your fault! I should break you, you idiot! Heheheh... Yeah, why not? After I break you, I'll break myself, and we'll be free, and-"

Ail holds the girl by her shoulders and speaks as though frightened. "Flan! Flandre, please don't do this! Don't leave me alone! Hang in there; I just know we'll get out of this!"

The girl easily pushes his hands away and crosses her own arms over her chest while glaring at him with her left eye narrowed. "Hmph! You're just as selfish as Onee-chan! '_Don't leave me alone, Flandre._' '_Please Flandre, I need you with me._'"

She scoffs with disgust as she turns her back to the boy and angrily says "what about me? When I needed Remilia she couldn't handle me and told me to lock myself up in my room. I did. I love her so I didn't have reasons to question her, but did she ever come back for me? **_NO, SHE DIDN'T!_** Now you're asking me to help you, and you'll just shrug me away once it's all nice and good again! You're all just selfish brats!"

She turns her head back to stick her tongue out at him, then looks away and taps her foot.

Ail is left in deep thought. It's true what Flandre says; he's been too wrapped up in his mind and accepting everything that comes from it and not really fighting back.

All he does is take those memories of the dream as though they are real and is using them to feed his own fear for who-knows-what reason.

He's been selfish to Sanae and Budou who have tried so hard to help, but he keeps worrying them to the death, and now that he's scared, he is asking the young blonde vampire, a tortured mind, to help him get over his own cowardice.

Realizing how wrong that all seems he sighs sadly then looks at the girl and speaks with sincerity. "I am so sorry Flandre. You are right, I'm being selfish. I'm just so scared of everything right now that I keep trying to find comfort anywhere I can; but I'm not even trying to help myself!"

He drops on his butt and crosses his legs as he slumps, then says "please forgive me Flan, but please, try to keep yourself here with me so that I can stay with you. Let's support each other while we figure out how we can get out of here and back home."

She giggles and moves. Before he knows it, she's hugging him from behind, cooing in a manner that makes him feel a bit uncomfortable, and with a soft and alluring tone of voice she says "well, that's more like it. You know, you could be a really GOOD big brother... or something even better."

Before he can speak up, she jumps on his lap, facing him while holding his sides, and says "you know~, you're a boy; I'm a girl. We're alone here in the dark~"

He chuckles playfully and sighs afterward, lightly pushes her back while smiling at her; noticing her more feminine features have somehow developed a lot more than Remilia's; and asks "young lady, where did you learn that kind of talk from? Do you even know what you're saying to me?"

She glowers at him and replies "hey, don't treat me like some kid! I'm 506 years old! I could easily teach you a thing or five if I wanted to! I-it's just that..."

She looks away while blushing a bit and continues "it's just that I p-prefer to act like a little girl. It's just fun and makes Remilia mad; that's it."

He places his hand on her head and rubs her, making her smile and coo contently while literally melting to his touch, and with the blonde subdued he says "I'm sorry, I do forget our age differences; but you have to understand Flandre, the only one for me is Sanae. That was clear to me the day I chose her to stand by my side."

The little blonde tries to get angry and curse, but his rubbing keeps her feeling blissfully happy, yet she manages to giggle and say "that's a shame. Heh, you would have made a wonderful vampire. Ah, but don't stop, don't stop. That feels nice~"

After some minutes, the boy gasps, easily lifts himself and the vampire up, places her behind him, and raises his hand as a shield for her while glowering forward.

"Listen you, we don't want any trouble; we just want to get back home!"

The dark creature stands mere feet in front of them, and narrows its eyes after listening to the boy speak.

It lifts its hand to the front of its face, and says "that light. It's blinding. It's driving us insane!"

The creature's feminine voice sounds a bit raspy and tired. She speaks slowly and sounds as though she's annoyed and in pain, yet there doesn't seem to be any signs of aggression of any kind.

She walks a bit closer, revealing to them her curvy feminine figure and waving hair that rises as though its in a tank of water and is being pushed upward by currents. Other than those features, her clawed hands and lack of feet gives both Ail and Flandre a bit of a reason to feel scared.

She lowers her hand and moans sadly, and then says "please... we don't want any trouble with you of the light any more. We just want to live in our darkness in peace. We just want you to _leave_."

The boy gasps softly, and then asks "Kali? Is that you?"

The creature looks at her clawed hands, looks back at him and shakes her head, then says "I do not know that name or my own. I woke up in here some time ago while I was in terrible pain. The cool of the darkness soothed my pain away, these creatures made me their queen of sorts, yet I cannot remember anything beyond that."

"I do... see small bits of a time in the light. Why was I there? Why was that man with the sword so keen on destroying me?"

The boy and vampire stare at the dark woman with fright, yet Flandre manages to ask "wh-what do you want from us?"

The woman hisses a complaint as she covers her eyes again and says "your light; it's too bright. Please, we can't handle the stress your light brings. Please go away. Go away now. Leave this place in peace."

Ail gulps, holds Flandre behind himself and says "but we can't. We really wish to go home, but we don't know how to get out of this place."

The dark woman sighs, shakes her head while looking down, then says "then, I'm afraid I will have to ki-"

She stops and looks up, her eyes widen up a bit, then says "a shadow in the light calls for you. Go to her."

"But how?" asks the boy. The dark woman lifts her hands above her head, and what looks like a dress begins to flutter around her as her energy acts like wind.

Flandre and Ail are lifted off the ground to their surprise, and after the dark woman says "take care light dwellers, and please, never come back;" they are shot to the ceiling.

* * *

At the Scarlet Mansion's library, Patchouli and Koakuma muse over some books that Leon and Lina bring over to them, Sanae and Budou are hanging around Agava as she keeps tapping over the area where the shadow gap appeared, and Sakuya has Azzhara in a cage while Remilia cowers on her throne while covering her naked self up with a towel.

The elder Scarlet shivers hard, her hair is a mess, the skin on her shoulders looks cut and bruised, and she even yelps weakly whenever the car roars at her and tries to break free of the cage for another round of beating.

The vampire looks adorable as she glances up at her maid; with those teary eyes glistening with the light in the room; and sadly says "Sakuya, please get Flandre back, or he will never forgive me!"

The maid's nose starts to bleed, yet acts and speaks elegantly as she holds Azzhara's cage away from herself and her mistress. "We are doing everything we can, My Lady. But; wait a minute. How do you know he's like this because of Flandre's disappearance, and not because he's just an evil cat from hell?"

Remilia twitches, looks away and covers her nervous face with her wings, and says "w-well it's obvious, isn't it? He only attacked me after Flandre disappeared. He obviously needs her here to beat _her_ up and not me."

The car growls and hisses at the light-blue haired girl, meows sweetly when he looks at the maid, then he suddenly roars as he tries to launch himself at the vampire again.

Sakuya pouts as she stares suspiciously at her mistress, then merely sighs it off and says "I see what you mean, My Lady. Don't worry; we'll get Flandre and Ail back bef-"

Before her sentence finishes, Agava and Sanae shriek with surprise and Budou yells with delight as Ail and Flandre pop right out of the dark gap, then fall back down on to the solid bookshelf.

The boy grunts as he tries to push himself back up; which he easily does even though he has the cute vampire clinging on to his back like a cat near water.

As soon as he's up, he is tackled back on his butt when Budou and Phredia jump and hug-tackle him while the little girl exclaims "PAPA, YOU'RE SAFE!"

"Budou? Wh-?" Before the dense one can register what's going on, Sanae holds his head, kisses his cheek, and as the anxiety slowly leaves her she says "thank Kanako! I thought it would take days to get you out!"

"But I..." Again he is interrupted when Remilia and Sakuya push the trio away to take Flandre and give her a tight hug. In Remilia's case, it's 'a comforting embrace'.

"Flan, I was so worried. What happened? How did you get back; and in just a few moments?"

"Oh young mistress," begins the elegant maid; "we were all so worried about you; even this vile cat."

Flandre looks at the maid, then at her almost-naked older sister, and just as she's about to speak, Azzhara jumps on her shoulder and purrs loudly while rubbing his face against her cheek.

She giggles as those whiskers and that soft fur tickle her face, then takes the three-tailed cat on her arms and asks "onee-sama, what are you talking about? We were in there for two whole days! That wasn't very fast, dummy. And why are you naked?"

An anger vein pops on the elder sister's forehead as she speaks with a forced smile and a darkly sweet tone "why Flandre, dear sister, you were only in there for an hour. Now stop calling me dummy or I'll smack your head again~"

The second her threat ends, the nekomata launches itself at the Mistress and quickly spins around her head while shredding what's left of her hat to pieces.

As if nothing was happening at all, Ail casually asks "what? An hour? But for us it felt like days in that shadow world."

"Yeah," declares the blonde vampire. "If it wasn't for the shadow queen lady who heard something from some shadow over here, we would still be stuck in there!"

Budou and Phredia tighten their hugs, then the bat youkai says "poor Papa and Flan! You look so pale and scared! I should have been there to save you!"

Sakuya covers Flandre's mouth while Ail and Sanae look at each other with a bit of wonder, then the dense boy rubs the girl on the head and says "thank you sweetie, but it's alright, we're back and that's all that matters."

The dense boy's stomach growls, earning himself many estranged looks from all over the library. He chuckles nervously, then says "uhh... we couldn't find anything to eat down there."

Remilia (whom happens to be lacking her hat for clawed reasons) coos happily and says "well~ I am feeling the need for some sustenance too, so let's go eat while we talk about tomorrows activities. Sakuya."

The summoned maid appears before her mistress in a flash with a fresh set of clothes and says "the meal will be ready in a few minutes. Please wait a moment." She then bows and disappears from the library, as per the norm, and now the mistress is fully dressed again.

The blue haired vampire smiles smugly, signals everyone to follow her, then as she walks toward the library's doors she says "you heard Sakuya, let's go wait at the table. Patchy, that means you and the icy munchkins as well."

The magician groans in annoyance, and looking angry she merely starts her floating toward the door. She's quickly followed by Leon who says "don't be mad, my love. I'll be with you."

Lina takes Koakuma in her arms and says "come my cute little Koa, let's go eat!" She takes flight toward the door after Patchouli and is out of the library before the magician. Said magician is not amused one bit.

Budou drags Ail by the hand while he holds the shrine maiden's hand, and says "come papa, you need your strength! But after we eat, we must go home. You need rest too!"

He chuckles softly and replies "yes, you're right. Some food and rest will do me a world of good."

The shrine maiden moans in tease-disappointment and says "and I was hoping to make you happy all night."

"Not tonight Mama Sanny; Papa Ail needs rest!" quickly says the little bat.

After everyone is gone, Flandre; who holds the seeping and purring Azzhara over her chest; and Agava, look at each other from the distance.

The shadow youkai jumps from the bookshelf and floats toward the blonde, then said vampire says "thanks Aggie."

Agava's face turns red with rage and she feels as though she grows ten times Flandre's size while furiously roaring "don't call me Aggie, you little-"

Flan merely places her hand on the shadow girl's shoulder and says "if it weren't for you telling that shadow queen where to take us we would be dead."

The shadow youkai feels like she shrinks back to her own size while she stares with surprise at the blonde girl, then she blushes and say "I-I don't know what you're talking about."

The little sister merely giggles, kisses her friend on the cheek; making her freeze and blush; then skips out of the library with the cat still on her arms.

Agava remains standing in place as she slowly reaches for and rubs her cheek where Flandre kissed her, sighs, then says to herself "and to think I tried to kill her once."

She suddenly hears Azzhara screech, then Flandre shriek then scream "sneak attack failed! Abort mission; ABORT MISSION!"

She's heard screaming repeated apologies at the top of her voice while she runs away from a roaring cat. The ample-chested shadow youkai can only face palm and sigh to what she's currently hearing. She cackles heartily afterwards.

* * *

One hour later, Kimi stands in front of the gate with a very annoyed look on her face while inside the mansion the sound of bullets, explosions, chuckles, giggles and screams keep raising her stress levels.

"I don't care that I look like a kid; just marry me Ail-nii!" Flandre's lustful sounding declaration is followed by Remilia's teasing voice. "Ail, if you marry me~ I'll let you have Sakuya on the weekends~."

There is a loud crash and the sound of glass shattering, then Sakuya angrily says "I refuse to accept those terms!"

Ail quickly shouts back "what she said! She's not a piece of meat, Remilia!"

The Scarlet sisters giggle, then the older sister says "I know. I just wanted to see that cute reaction."

The entrance door bursts open, and after Budou, Phredia and Agava run outside, Sanae holds said door and calls "Ail, hurry up! ...Hurry-hurry-HURRY!"

Meiling screams just before the sound of a wall breaking takes over the annoying loud sounds, then Flandre cries "where are you going onii-chan! Flandre's better looking than Remilia and Sanae put together!"

Sanae shoots some talismans into the mansion, then Ail flies by with his Yozoragan mode activated, picks her up, then joins Budou and the others above the gate outside.

Kimi lays her eyes on the boy and those ethereal dragon wings of his and her face flushes almost immediately.

She is quick to realize what's happening to her, so she quickly looks away and uses her ponytail to wrap around her eyes and prevent herself from seeing those incredibly attractive wings.

Ail looks toward the mansion and shouts "get a hold of yourselves already! Jeez, why do you two insist so much!?"

Azzhara glares at the boy from the entrance an hisses, then Meiling is pulled outside as she's barely holding Flandre back, while Sakuya has her arms locked under Remilia's and says "just go, go! We can't hold them off forever!"

The boy nods and he and his group begin to fly away, but Remilia calmly calls the dense boy, and smiles friendly-like when he looks at her.

She giggles playfully, waves, then says "don't forget~ you come pick us up in the afternoon tomorrow. And don't worry; Sakuya _will _have _all_ of our swimsuits ready by then."

The maid sighs. She knows well her mistress just wants to tease her about how she looks in her swimsuit (a very rare sight), but merely says a sad "as you wish, My Lady;" then scowls at the flying boy.

The boy nods, then takes off on his way after his girlfriend. As soon as he's away, Remilia and Flandre look at each other, grin mischievously, then run back inside; the older sister shouting "race you to Sakuya's undies~" and the little sister replying "I'll go get Meiling's first!"

The gate guard yelps after being kicked away by the little sister, then runs after the little girl while calling "please don't go there! It's a mess!

The chief maid groans after being pinched by the mistress, and as soon as she recovers she chases after the vampire while crying "My Lady, please, not my room! That's indecent!"

After they are safely away from the mansion, Sanae flies closer to her boyfriend, smacks him on the back of the head, and exclaims "why did you have to go and take those wings out!? If you wanted that kind of attention you could have just told me! I'm your girlfriend!"

The boy barely reacts to her smack and words, and replies "I'm sorry Sanae, I couldn't help it when I saw that knife cut you like that. I just lost it. I wanted to heal you."

The girl pouts and looks away, then sees Budou's worried face telling her 'please don't scold him', and so she settles down.

"So, you healed her arm but couldn't calm yourself down and all hell broke loose." Agava's calm words shock everyone; especially since they would expect some form of insult coming from her.

She flies backward to look at him as his ethereal dragon wings disappear, and says "your own fear is turning your nightmarish experience into reality kid. If you really want things to go back to the way they were; which are almost getting there; you have to deal with that new fear in you."

Her eyes show no signs of lies, contempt, hate, or anything that could be expected from her. Instead there is great wisdom and true concern to be seen.

Ail nods once, apologizes, then says "you're right Miss Agava, and I'm doing my best-"

"Well it's not good enough!" Her sudden burst forces Sanae to her boyfriend's side for support just as the shadow youkai turns around and says "you should go talk to the monk again, or perhaps the shrine's maid. I bet you my ass they will help you more than you think."

The rest of the flight back to Ail's home is quiet and fairy-free, so Sanae takes the chance to keep the boy close to her at all times, making sure to check for any more signs of upsets he might go through. She thinks that maybe that way she can figure out what's triggering such reactions.

* * *

Later, after they reach Ail's home, Agava waves at them and says "well, it was fun hangin' around you guys today. Got to see Flandre suffering and all that; but it's time I go find Rumia before she comes and gets me."

Ail chuckles at the thought of an angry Rumia-wife holding a ladle while lovingly scolding Agava, then asks "is that so~?"

A dark blur lands on the dense boy's back and smashes his head with a washtub, making a very disturbing bending-metal-bell sound.

The boy falls flat on the ground in front of the house and holds his head in pain, while the smiling Rumia hops off him, throws the washtub at the charging shrine maiden, dusts her hand, then angrily shouts "stop stealing my lines, you jerk!"

"You're the jerk, you jerk," shouts Budou back at her while helping her papa and mama back on to their feet.

Agava is tiptoeing away from the house; being as quick and silent as a shadow; but the tiny cute hand of the darkness youkai grabs her shoulder, and its owner says "so sneaking around without me, trying to hide and talk about me while you think I'm not watching. You may be a shadow youkai, but I **_am_** the darkness, you know."

The shadow youkai raises her hands to the air and shakes with fright, and even though she's taller, curvier, faster and bustier than the little darkness youkai, fear takes the best of her.

"Ru-R-Rumia! What a surprise... Please spare me; I was just having a bit of fun on my own! Is it a crime to one some **me** time every now and then?"

The little blonde sighs and lowers her head, lifts it back up with her usual carefree smile, then says "fine, fine, you got a point there, but remember~, if you ever get too naughty, I'll have to clip your wings~!"

Ail stands up with the still-worried Budou on his arms nursing the bump on his head, and says "that sounded far more frightening than it should have."

* * *

Later that night, after having prepared the bathtub for Budou and Phredia, Ail heads to the kitchen for a little snack, sighing off the sense of paranoia that seems to want to creep itself back into his system.

He stops when, at the middle of his living room, he sees a girl with short green hair and green eyes who wears a dark green dress adorned with charms around the bottom, and who wears a hat somewhat similar to Futo's, only this one has a charm on it and a strand that might pass as a bow or something. The boy believes it's like a kanmuri styled hat.

He notices she has two ghostly tails that gives the impression of her having legs, before speaking. "Excuse me Miss, but how did you get inside my house?"

The girl that seems curious and disgusted about her surroundings immediately turns to face her host. She floats over to him, hovers around him once, then mutters "so this is the guy Miko-sama and Futo-chan keep talking about? Doesn't look like much."

Anilan snorts, crosses his arms over his chest, then says "well aren't you a rude one, whomever-you-are. Could you at least tell me your name?"

The girl glowers at him and replies "shouldn't you offer your own name before asking someone else's?"

The boy returns the look with a nonchalant gaze of his own and says "I'm not the one breaking into someone else's home, Miss."

The girl's glower becomes an uncaring look, then she lightly embraces herself while saying "pheh; you got me there. Name's Tojiko Soga, Mister Ail. Oh yes, I know who you are. Miko and Futo described you perfectly; though they did fail to mention how pathetic you look. I almost pity whatever's around you."

Ail forces a smile as he furrows his brows and says "my, how rude you are, Miss Tojiko. Any particular reason as to why you hate me so much?"

The green haired girl rubs her chin while thinking, and then says "I don't really hate you yet, but I'm getting there. Those two also failed to mention you're just another male butt-head."

The dense one feels incredibly annoyed, but hides it behind a calm look as he says "I see. Well, that's the second time someone's called me that today. Maybe I need a haircut."

"That won't save you from your stupidity," casually says the girl while rubbing her nails together and looking elsewhere.

Ail has had enough of her, and yet can't feel as upset as he would have before, and calmly says "well, it appears you really hate me that much. Please Miss Tojiko, don't let my face hold you back; get out of my house and don't ever come-"

"Tojiko-chaaaannn!" That sweet excited call Budou makes as she rush-hugs the rude girl while in her pajamas has just made Anilan's unspoken request null and void.

The girls giggle as they finish their hug, then the little cute bat asks "what are you doing here? I thought you didn't like entering other people's houses."

Tojiko rubs the little bat's head and says "well, your house is wonderful, so I don't mind entering it at all."

She giggles along with the little girl, while Ail smiles at them and thinks "_great, this annoying woman and my little Budou are friends. I can't kick her out now._"

[_Well, you can always just do so subtly._]

"_Huh, good idea Mima! Thanks._"

Before he knows it, the cute little bat and her adorably cute fairy are pulling Tojiko toward him, then said bat says "and this is my Papa Ail. He's really nice you know. You two would probably get along, since everyone like my papa."

Both boy and spirit girl chuckle uncomfortably while facing each other, then said rude guest says though her teeth "you don't say? My, how nice."

She continues to force a smile while thinking "_great; **HE** had to be her so-called papa. Gah, now I'll have to fake liking him. Well, since it's for Budou, I don't have a choice._"

They keep chuckling uncomfortably while forcing smiles at each other, then Ail says "my, look at the time. It's time for bed, Budou. I'm sure Miss Tojiko has somewhere important to be as well, am I right?"

Tojiko fakes a laugh and says "oh my, you are so right! I had to do this thing for Miko, so I should be going now."

Budou glances at both, paying close attention to their energies, hums suspiciously, then happily says "alright then, I'm going to bed! Nice to see you Tojiko! Good night! And good night to you too, Papa Ail!"

Right after the little girl is gone, the fake smiles turn into a glower from the girl, and a flat gaze from the boy.

She sighs to calm herself down, then says "well then, I guess we'll have to fake playing nice to each other, you creep."

The boy sighs his urge to kill her off, then says "please, don't be so rude. It's making my fake-liking you twice as hard."

They stare at each other as though challenging one another, then the girl pulls open the floor under the welcome mat next to the door, and says "hmph! Just be thankful Budou likes you so much, or I would fry you with my lightning."

He chuckles, places his hands on his hips, and says "no, _you're _the one that's lucky, or else I would probably teach you about torturous pain. It's easy to achieve on a spirit, you know."

She merely scoffs at him, jumps into her little shining hole, then disappears as soon as the rug falls back in place.

Ail sighs again. He walks over to the sofa and lets himself drop on it, then sighs loudly and says to himself "really, what a rude... woman! How does Budou even like her?"

[_That's because your cute little bat girl made Miko very happy just by being herself, and so the Tojiko girl you just met likes her by default. They've been buddies for a bit now._]

The boy raises an eyebrow, chuckles afterward, then thinks "_oh great, now I see why Byakuren warned me about them. Oh well, I'll just have to take things slowly with them._"

[_Right, right, look Ail, just go to sleep. I want to see you nice and refreshed for tomorrow. ...Yup, you got it. I'll be going to your get-together too to keep an eye on you, so look sharp~. I'll be wearing my bikini~._]

Anilan is not sure what to think, reply, or what he should feel, so he just shrugs and says "well, sleep is always good."

* * *

Meanwhile, at Flandre's room, Azzhara is in his human form and is rubbing Flandre's head as she sleeps soundly on her bed.

The vampire wakes up with a yawn, smacks her lips, glances around, then starts rummaging under her covers.

She gasps, uncovers herself, sees she's wearing lewd grown-up pajamas, and after her yelp she shouts "hey, what the hell? These aren't my pajamas!"

The boy smiles with delight at the sight he sees, and then says "I know my love. These are the pajamas that woman with blue hair sold me. She was right; you _do_ make them look lovelier."

Flandre snarls as she rushes him with her claws set on turning him to mincemeat, however a simple claw poking her between the eyes drains her of strength and will, and the boy simply pushes her back on to her bed.

The little blonde sighs with frustration; giving up on trying to kill him (for now); and asks "were you really that upset when I got trapped in that dark place with Ail-nii?"

Azzhara nods, then says "I don't want to lose another master; ESPECIALLY you, my love. I will do what I must to end this silly little revenge on you, so that I may wrap you in my love forever."

The girl groans as she turns away from her stalking lover, then grumbles "whatever. You just want to kill me anyways."

He chuckles, then says "if that were true, I would have left you half-dead already. My plans of revenge were... never mind. Just sleep. I'll keep watch over you, my dear sweet love."

As he exits the room in his cat form he fails to see the little vampire's face turning red and her lips wriggling up as his words hit that strand that makes her feel both uncomfortable, and happy.

She wants it to stop and thinks of killing that cat, but thinking farther ahead she feels she might miss him if he does go away. "Ugh! That stupid cat. I think I'm starting to like him!"

She whines and yelps as she covers her blushing embarrassed face after realizing what she just said, and eventually falls asleep under her covers with a cute smile.

* * *

To be continued...

Characters, spell cards and scenarios belong to ZUN -Team Shanghai Alice-

Ail, Budou, Phredia, Agava, Kimi and Kali were created by Willie G.R.

May 16 2012

Written by

Willie G.R.

* * *

Satori: Ah, you finally finished another chapter. Good for you. Will you finish this story?

Me: Of course I will... unless I die, or explode, or get taken to another dimension, or get eaten by a youkai, or get money to buy all the Skylanders figures and Wii U Games I want.

Satori: Well aren't you informative? Boo~ you meanie. I wanted to pick that out of your mind before you said it.

Me: Too bad. I said it.

Satori: You did.

Me: ...

Satori: ...

Remilia: That's it? No jabs, insults, or making this old man cry?

Me and Satori: **Not today. ... Hey! Stop copying me! No, you stop it!**

Remilia: *Shrugs* well, it's something.


End file.
